SAN DIEGO – Researchers with Naval Health Research Center’s (NHRC) Birth and Infant Health Research (BIHR) program published new findings on January 27, strengthening the understanding of birth defects among military families.
The findings, published in Military Medicine, addressed and allayed concerns that a birth defect, hypospadias, might occur more frequently due to service-related exposures.
Previous routine surveillance of BIHR’s database had identified higher rates of hypospadias compared to the U.S. civilian population, which prompted NHRC researchers to conduct a study to determine whether this difference was due to service-related exposures or if it was the result of discrepancies in how the condition was documented in medical records.
“From identifying trends, to ensuring leaders get evidence-based data in order to make actionable decisions, interpreting data is crucial to our research efforts,” said Capt. Kellie McMullen, NHRC commanding officer. “The work that our epidemiologists do in the BIHR program is instrumental to the readiness of our warfighters. Families must be healthy and happy in order for our warfighters to remain focused and lethal.”
Examining data from over 600,000 male births among U.S. military families from 2010–2020, researchers found no consistent evidence that military-related exposures increased the risk of children born with hypospadias.
“This research helps us better understand why we’re observing certain patterns in our surveillance data,” said Dr. Ava Marie Conlin, principal investigator for the BIHR program. “Most importantly, we did not find evidence that military-specific exposures are contributing to this birth defect. Instead, our analyses suggest that differences in how conditions are coded and documented across medical systems play a meaningful role in the rates we observe.”
January is National Birth Defects Awareness Month, an opportunity to highlight research into birth outcomes in military families. Hypospadias is a common birth defect in boys that affects how the urethral opening forms, and usually requires surgery to correct.
“Every child born into a military family deserves the strongest start possible,” said Conlin. “By monitoring infant health trends over many years and working closely with clinicians and public health partners, we ensure families have the support and information they need to welcome healthy babies.”
The BIHR program conducts one of the nation’s largest and longest-running surveillance efforts focused on infant health outcomes among military families. Established in 1998, BIHR has collected data from nearly three million births over 28 years, creating a comprehensive picture of infant health across generations of military families. These long-term data allow researchers to track trends over time, identify emerging concerns, inform healthcare policy, and strengthen confidence in the safety and quality of care for warfighters and their beneficiaries. “BIHR’s work is a vitally important resource for our service members, their families and military leadership,” Conlin observed. “Knowing that many military members come from families who have served for generations, we’re also building a strong fighting force for the future.”
Military Medicine is the official journal of The Society of Federal Health Professionals, also known as AMSUS. It publishes peer-reviewed scientific papers, case reports and editorials. NHRC’s findings can be read in Volume 191, Issue 1-2 of Military Medicine, and at https://academic.oup.com/milmed/advance-article/doi/10.1093/milmed/usaf635/8442401.
NHRC, part of Navy Medicine Research & Development, supports Navy, Marine Corps and joint U.S. warfighter readiness and lethality with research and development that delivers high-value, high-impact solutions to the health challenges U.S. military population faces on the battlefield, at-sea, home and abroad.