Biomedical subjects

J T Curran

Publications and source records attributed to J T Curran.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1991

Use of prescription drugs in the first trimester and congenital malformations.

A prospective survey of prenatal use of prescription drugs in Tasmania yielded detailed information on drug exposure, delivery and outcome for 56,037 births from 1982 to 1989. First trimester drug use was reported by 30.9% of women, and 17.9% used only supplements of vitamins and/or minerals; 40% used alcohol during the first trimester, and 28.8% smoked cigarettes. There were 1,035 (1.85%) congenital malformations, of which 885 (85.5%) were major. The malformation rate was not significantly different in the following exposure categories: supplements only (1.62%); other pharmaceuticals (1.92%); smokers (1.88%); alcohol users (1.89%); and maternal age 35 or more years (1.95%). Adjusting for alcohol use, smoking, maternal age and diabetes mellitus, significant associations [expressed as adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals (CI)] were found between aspirin and hypospadias (3.5, 95% CI 1.4 to 8.8); dicyclomine and phocomelia (4.4, 95% CI 1.0 to 19.5); and between oral contraceptive use and pes cavus (9.7, 95% CI 2.3 to 40.4). Although significant, these associations were based on very few cases and no direct supporting evidence could be found from other data sources.

Abnormalities, Drug-Induced↗

PubMed1985

Low birth weight in Tasmania 1975-1983: the effect of socioeconomic status.

An analysis of all births in Tasmania from 1975 to 1983 showed that social class differences in low birth weights were almost entirely restricted to infants between 1500 and 2500 g weight at birth. There was a marginal increase in very low birth weight infants (less than 1500 g) among women whose partners were unemployed or in unskilled work but extremely low birth weight infants (less than 1000 g) were evenly distributed across the whole social spectrum.

Australia↗

PubMed1985

Cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption and fetal outcome in Tasmania 1981-82.

Analysis of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption patterns recorded in pregnancy could not detect a harmful effect of alcohol at levels below 2 glasses a day. Total abstainers fared very slightly worse than those who drank occasionally. Smoking was associated with lower birth-weight and a worse fetal outcome independent of socioeconomic status, parity, maternal age or alcohol consumption. There was evidence of an interaction between smoking and adverse social and parity factors in low birth-weight.

Adult↗

PubMed1984

Adolescent pregnancy in Tasmania.

The obstetric performance of 1719 pregnancies in mothers aged less than 18 years was compared to that of the rest of the obstetric population. There was a significantly poorer outcome in the adolescents in the mean birthweight, the prevalence of birthweight below 2500 g and of gestation period below 28 weeks, Apgar score, perinatal mortality and the occurrence of hypertension in pregnancy. When the primiparous adolescent group (1607) was compared with primiparas aged 18-34 years (16 220), these differences were less marked. The two groups (adolescent and adult primiparas) were matched by marital status and socioeconomic class, and no significant differences were found in these parameters. It is concluded that biological age per se does not confer an increased risk in pregnancy. The high proportion of primiparas in the adolescent group (93%), and the associated increased prevalence of high-risk factors in this group (single marital status, low socioeconomic class, and smoking) would explain the poorer obstetric outcome in comparison with that of the total adult group.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1983

Smoking and alcohol consumption during pregnancy: an epidemiological study in Tasmania.

Smoking and alcohol ingestion were analysed in 5100 women confined in Tasmania in 1981. This represented 70% of the total number of confinements. The incidence of smoking throughout pregnancy was 33.6%, and 2.7% of the women studied smoked at some time during pregnancy. Alcohol consumption in pregnancy was recorded for 55.9% of patients. However, 99% were only occasional drinkers. There was a statistically higher incidence in smoking habits in the age group 20 years and under, the unmarried and the lower socio-economic classes, whereas the reverse was true for alcohol consumption. The analysis provides a basis for the groups toward which programmes should be directed.

Adult↗

PubMed1980