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The sex ratio at birth (male/total:M/T) is remarkably constant but may be influenced by many factors. Even small changes may result in highly statistically significant variations. The most important factors that impinge on M/T are stress and sex-selective termination. Additional factors include geographical trends, coital rates, radiation, secular trends and seasonality. This paper will summarise these factors but the most important is gendercide, which has resulted in circa 130,000,000 missing women in the world., peer-reviewed

Objective: This study aimed to identify the number of term infants admitted to the Maltese Neonatal and Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (NPICU) between January and June 2016, as well as factors contributing to their admission. Methods: All term infants (37+ weeks gestation) born in January-June 2016, transferred from Central Delivery Suite or Obstetric Wards to NPICU were identified. Patient registers, electronic case summaries, and the National Obstetric Information System (NOIS) database were used, with approval from the Data Protection Office, to collect data for a retrospective case control study. Results: Of the term infants born in these 6 months, 5.2% (101) were admitted to NPICU resulting in 42.6% of all admissions. The mean gestational age was 39 weeks (95% CI 38.8, 39.3) and mean birth weight was 3.3kg (95% CI 3.2, 3.4). More than half had been born by elective and emergency Caesarean section (26% and 27% respectively). Commonest reason for admission was respiratory distress (37%). Others included non-bilious vomiting (20%), congenital abnormalities (13%), hyperbilirubinaemia (8%), and infection (4%). Statistically significant factors associated with admission were operative delivery, threatened abortion and maternal infection during pregnancy, maternal insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, and low Apgar scores. Conclusion: The significant contributing factors should be targeted and further evaluation over a longer time-frame with an interdisciplinary team carried out in an effort to reduce rate of admissions and improve quality of care., peer-reviewed

Background: Secular trends have been found in the male–female ratio at birth (M/F: male births divided by total births) in various countries, and this ratio is anticipated to approximate 0.515. Births in Dragon years are considered auspicious. Fertility is known to have increased in Dragon years in Hong Kong. This study analyzed M/F with reference to Dragon years. Methods: Annual national data for male and female live births in Hong Kong were obtained from the World Health Organization and analyzed with contingency Tables. Results: There were 3,827,347 live births (1960–2009). Births declined steadily, then increased from 2004 in association with M/F. M/F was stable prior to this time, with spikes in 1975–1976, 1988, and 2000, associated with increases in births for these same years. Conclusion: M/F follows a U-shaped regression on cycle day of insemination. Families attempting to conceive children during Dragon years may have increased coital rates, inadvertently skewing M/F in favor of a male excess., peer-reviewed

En aquest treball aprofundirem sobre quins són els factors que afecten a la natalitat i com està relacionada amb el creixement econòmic. L'àmbit en el que realitzarem l'estudi serà en l'encomia espanyola, amb dades per Comunitats Autònomes. Primerament comentarem la literatura econòmica referent al tema. Veurem que quasi tots els experts segueixen una línia semblant d'estudi i per tant, consideren uns factors similars a l'hora de determinar el nombre de fills que pot tenir una llar; tot i que hi ha diferents opinions sobre la relació entre creixement econòmic i taxa de natalitat. Un cop comprovat quins són els factors que alteren la taxa de natalitat a Espanya, realitzarem una segona anàlisi on comprovarem si la crisi que hi va haver al voltant del 2008, va afectar a la taxa de natalitat. El període d’anàlisi és del 2000 al 2014 ja que engloba èpoques d’estabilitat econòmica, expansió i recessió, i així, podrem comprovar amb millor precisió l’efecte

Background: The male:female ratio at birth (M/F: male births divided by total births) is anticipated to approximate 0.515. The M/F in Micronesia in the Pacific Ocean has been noted to be higher than anticipated. This study analysed M/F in island populations available from a World Health Organization dataset. Methods: The following islands were identified from the dataset as being sufficiently complete for analysis: Bahamas, Barbados, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, and Mauritius. Results: There were 540 8629 live births available for analysis over the period 1960–2009 with an overall M/F of 0.5106 (95% CL 0.5101, 0.5110). There were no secular trends in M/F. Conclusion: The M/F in these equatorial islands is lower than anticipated, and the reason for this is unknown., peer-reviewed

Response to The Letter to the Editor by Alfred K¨orblein concerning “Atomic bomb testing and its effects on global male to female ratios at birth” by Victor Grech, International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine 27 (2015), 35-44. DOI 10.3233/JRS-150641., In the recently published paper, no direct claims were made since only relatively indirect global ambient radioactivity levels are available.However, available data from reputable sources clearly shows a global annual average population radiation exposure that peaked in 1962 and 1963 shortly after a spike in atomic bomb testing that pre-empted the Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963. Ambient global radiation levels fell progressively thereafter. Korblein’s statement that WHO data only goes as far back as 1970 is incorrect. For most countries, data is available as far back as 1950, and this data has been used not only to review country level data, but also data at continental level., N/A