Prior abortions and neural tube defects.

Out of a series of 219 women who had had a child with anencephaly or spina bifida (ASB) in the Manchester area, there were 69 where this ASB pregnancy had been both preceded and succeeded by at least one other pregnancy. There was a significant excess of spontaneous abortions when the preceding pregnancy was compared with the succeeding pregnancy. Half of these abortions were followed by curettage of the uterus, a fact which is a little against the trophoblastic rest hypothesis.