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The impact of consanguinity on neonatal and infant health
Journal article   Peer reviewed

The impact of consanguinity on neonatal and infant health

A.H. Bittles and M.L. Black
Early Human Development, Vol.86(11), pp.737-741
2010
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2010.08.003
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Abstract

Marriage between biological relatives is widely popular in many parts of the world, with over 1000 million people living in countries where 20-50+% of unions are contracted between couples related as second cousins or closer. Consanguinity is, however, a controversial topic, in part due to public misunderstanding, complicated by often exaggerated past estimates of the adverse health outcomes. While some consanguineous couples are at high risk of conceiving a child with a genetic disorder, they are a small minority. Thus a multi-population meta-analysis has indicated an excess infant death rate of 1.1% in the progeny of first cousins, and even this figure may be compromised by inadequate control for non-genetic variables. The benefits as well as the disadvantages of consanguineous marriage are assessed and discussed, with specific consideration given to the health of migrant communities in Western countries, among whom first cousin marriage remains preferential.

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UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#3 Good Health and Well-Being

Source: InCites

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42 Record Views
97 Times Cited - Web of Science

InCites Highlights

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Citation topics
1 Clinical & Life Sciences
1.189 Genome Studies
1.189.1853 Human Genetic Diversity
Web Of Science research areas
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Pediatrics
ESI research areas
Clinical Medicine
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