Possibilities of prevention of congenital developmental defects

: One of the still open questions of teratology is the relationship between experimental teratological investigations and their validity in human medicine. The aetiology of the development of inborn developmental defects comprises factors the ratio of which is the subject of discussions. The category of still unknown factors is the largest one. This means that in 70% of inborn developmental defects there is nothing to go by. The influence of the deteriorated living or working environment need not be manifested by a higher incidence of seriously damaged foetuses. Comprehensive preconception care is a way which may lead to improvement in the sphere of prevention, although its application is not unequivocal. An essential prerequisite of effective prevention of inborn developmental errors is recognition of the causes of and laws governing their development.