Neural Tube Defects

Neural tube defects affect about 4000 pregnancies a year and are thus among the most common of severe birth defects. Prenatal diagnosis can now detect about 70% of neural tube defects, but the tests produce many false positives, so the question is under what circumstances should they be recommended to pregnant women. This comprehensive volume - the collective knowledge of more than fifty-five experts in the field - provides lucid and authoritative discussions on this topic as well as on a wide variety of theoretical, experimental and clinical issues. It addresses embryology, epidemiology, genetics, clinical features of NTDs, surgical techniques, treatment and patient educations, and public health. Written with a wide readership in mind, the book will be of interest to geneticists, pediatricians, neurologists, internists, graduate students, researchers interested in the field of birth defects, as well as to individuals with NTDs and their family members.