The relationship between maternal iron status and risk of congenital heart defects: a case-control study

Abstract Background The cause of most congenital heart defects (CHD) cases is still unknown. A study on animals showed a link between maternal iron deficiency and congenital heart defects in mice, but this connection in humans is not yet clear. Our goal in this study was to assess the iron levels in mothers and infants with CHDs and to explore the potential relationship between maternal iron status and CHDs. Methods We conducted a case-control study in Damascus, Syria, including 70 cases and 30 controls. The study involved mothers whose infants were aged from 1 day to 1 year. We interviewed eligible mothers to gather information about their pregnancies and collected peripheral blood from both the mothers and their infants to analyze iron-related biomarkers. We used multinomial logistic regression to estimate the odds ratio (with 95% confidence intervals) for maternal iron status with CHDs. Results The iron-related biomarkers (serum ferritin (SF), serum iron (Fe), and transferrin saturation (TSAT) showed lower levels, while total iron binding capacity (TIBC) was higher among mothers of CHD infants compared to the control group (p-value < 0.05). Additionally, mothers of CHD infants were at a higher risk of having iron deficiency (OR=2.91, 95% CL: 1.143-7.418) compared to the control group. Conclusions Mothers of CHD infants exhibited lower levels of SF, Fe, and TSAT, and higher TIBC compared to the control group. Furthermore, the CHD mothers were more likely to have iron deficiency compared to the control group.