Surveillance

With the passage of 63 O.S. Section 1-550.2 in 1992, birth defect surveillance began in Oklahoma County (which represents 21% of 1992 live births) with the establishment of the Oklahoma Birth Defects Registry (OBDR).  In 1993, data collection expanded to include Oklahoma, Tulsa, and Cleveland Counties, where 44 percent of the State's live births occurred. In 1994, the OBDR began statewide surveillance of Oklahoma births occurring in Oklahoma hospitals. Currently, a case entered into the OBDR must meet the following criteria:

• was born on or after January 1, 1994
• mother was an Oklahoma resident at the time of birth
• was born in an Oklahoma hospital
• diagnosed with, or having signs and symptoms of, an inclusion diagnosis prior to the second (2nd) birthday
• identified as an OBDR case prior to the child's third (3rd) birthday
• gestational age of 20 weeks or greater.

All cases in the OBDR are matched against birth and fetal death certificates. The OBDR was one of only eight registries in the nation to receive an 'A' grade from the PEW Environmental Health Commission in 1999, and again in 2002 from the Trust for America's Health. To be included in the OBDR, a diagnosis must be made by the attending physician that meets those inclusion diagnoses listed in the BPA/CDC 6-Digit Code modifications for classification of diagnoses. The OBDR Code/Procedure Manual  (745.9KB.pdf) lists all the birth defects and their 6-digit codes.