Epidemiology of congenital malformations in Kazakhstan

Introduction. Congenital malformations are the main cause of morbidity and mortality amongst newborns. The detailed epidemiological data about congenital anomalies in Kazakhstan have not been reported yet. The objective of the study was to estimate the prevalence of congenital malformations and their regional distribution in Kazakhstan. In addition, the study aimed to assess the cause-specific death rate, perinatal, neonatal, post-neonatal, and infant mortality rates for the period 2015-2019. Material and methods. The descriptive cross-sectional study was based on data obtained from the Republican Centre of Health Development (18 regions of Kazakhstan) for the period 2015-2019. Results. In 2019, the prevalence of total congenital malformations decreased by 30-40% compared to 2015. At the same time, the prevalence of congenital malformations of the respiratory system increased by 14%. The congenital cardiovascular malformations prevailed (18.3 per 10,000 live births) in 2015. The highest values of mortality from congenital malformations were observed in South Kazakhstan. In 2019, the rates of perinatal (13.14), post-neonatal (3.89), neonatal (4.32), and infant mortality (8.21) per 10,000 live births showed a slight decrease. In 2019, an increase of perinatal mortality was observed compared to 2015 (from 13.96 to 14.29 per 10,000 live births), while neonatal mortality decreased from 8.33 to 6.08 per 10,000 live births, as well as infant mortality (from 11.33 to 9.42 per 10,000 live births). Conclusions. During the 5-year period of the study, the analysis showed a decrease in the prevalence of some congenital malformations, such as malformations of digestive, urinary, nervous systems, and others. In the southern region of Kazakhstan there was a high rate of different forms of congenital defects, in particular, the circulatory system abnormalities. The results can be useful for the optimization of the national strategy, to reduce the prevalence of congenital malformations.