Congenital defects of the central nervous system and occupational factors during pregnancy. A case-referent study.

The possible impact of occupational factors on the furtherance of congenital defects has been under study at our department for the past four years, and it has assumed a special interest because of the importance to understand the etiology of these disorders and a good possibility for prevention by elimination of the causative factor from the work environment. In connection with a register based case-referent study utilizing supplementary information, acquired by a single interviewer, we analyzed various occupational factors related to pregnancy. We found that organic solvent exposure and exposure to various dusts during the pregnant period were more common among the case mothers than among their matched referents. These findings may offer further rough guidance in the quest for the identification of possibly embryotoxic agents that may occur in occupational life.