Babies born with hand disorders in German city
September 13, 2019
St. Mary's Hospital in the German town of Buer on Friday said three babies were born between June and September with congenital anomalies of one of their hands.
"We have not seen anomalies of this kind for many years," the hospital said in a statement. While it could be a "coincidental cluster," the hospital said it finds the brief period in between the cases "peculiar."
Since there is not a national database to compare data on congenital disorders, the hospital said it could not determine prevalence. However, it said that between 1% to 2% of all babies are born with some form of them.
The babies did not show signs of other disorders.
Read more: Does it really matter where your DNA comes from?
Searching for answers
The hospital said its doctors are in contact with Charite university hospital in Berlin to determine potential factors. The children's parents all live near the hospital but did not share any known commonalities.
Disorders of the type suffered by the children develop early in a pregnancy, between the 24th and 36th day after the egg has been fertilized, the hospital statement said.
Congenital hand differences include problems with the formation of the entire arm or hand or even failure of parts of the hand to separate. Although they can occur during pregnancies, they are rare.
German tabloid Kölner Express broke the news story after midwives working at the hospital expressed concerns over the number of cases.
Doctors from the hospital as well as pediatricians treating the children are still working together to determine the cause of the anomalies.
Read more: Gene editing of babies could be ethical, experts say