The Iowa Center collaborates with the Iowa Registry for Congenital and Inherited Disorders (IRCID) to identify children with birth defects in Iowa. Since 1983, the Iowa Registry has monitored birth defects in all 99 Iowa counties. The Iowa Center was established in 1996 and enrolls families statewide in the NBDPS. Iowa families have been very willing to participate in the NBDPS. This participation provides the opportunity to study risk factors for birth defects among a rural population.
Paul Romitti, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology in the College of Public Health at The University of Iowa. Dr. Romitti is the Director of the Iowa Registry for Congenital and Inherited Disorders. He oversees the Iowa Center and directs the interview and sample collection and epidemiologic and gene-environment data analyses for the Center. Dr. Romitti also leads the NBDPS research group to study the effects of tobacco, alcohol, caffeine and illicit drugs on birth defects and is examining the impact of pesticide exposure on birth defects...Read More
Local Activities and Research:
- Study interactions between tobacco and alcohol use and nutrition as risk factors for birth defects
- Identify possible genetic risk factors for orofacial clefts
- Examine the link between pesticide exposure and birth defects
- Study the effects of compounds in drinking water and birth defects
- Understand the long-term outcomes among children with birth defects
Iowa Chapter of the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation
Iowa Department of Public Health
Iowa Regional Genetic Consultation Services
The University of Iowa Center for Health Effects of Environmental Contamination
Rocheleau CM, Lawson CC, Waters MA, Hein MJ, Stewart PA, Correa A, Echeverria D, Reefhuis J. Inter-rater reliability of assessed prenatal maternal occupational exposures to solvents, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and heavy metals. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene. 2011; 8(12):718-728.
Rocheleau CM, Romitti PA, Sanderson WT, Sun L, Lawson CC, Waters MA, Stewart PA, Olney RS, Reefhuis J. Maternal occupational pesticide exposure and risk of hypospadias in the National Birth Defects Prevention Study. Birth Defects Research (Part A): Clinical and Molecular Teratology. 2011; 91(11):927-936.