Alaska reports increase in heart valve defect, decrease in abdominal wall defect

Alaska recorded a statistically significant increase in pulmonary valve atresia and stenosis and a statistically significant decrease in omphalocele during 2018–2022, according to data released May 5, 2026, by the Alaska Department of Health.

The Alaska Birth Defects Registry reported 87 cases of pulmonary valve atresia and stenosis during the five-year period. The estimated prevalence was 13.1 per 10,000 live births. The national prevalence for 2016–2020 was 10.3 per 10,000 births. Omphalocele, an abdominal wall defect, showed 76 reported cases with an estimated prevalence of 2.9 per 10,000 births.

The registry has monitored congenital anomalies statewide since 1996 using a modified passive surveillance system. The system collects data from hospitals, specialty clinics, insurers, and diagnostic laboratories. The May 5, 2026, bulletin presented data for 25 of the 47 nationally defined core and recommended birth defects.

The department cautioned that Alaska and U.S. estimates are derived using different statistical methods and case ascertainment approaches. Clinical misdiagnosis, medical coding misclassification, incomplete surveillance ascertainment, small population size, and the rarity of many of these conditions can contribute to unstable estimates.

All organizations that collect or maintain medical records for children under 3 years of age are required to report qualifying conditions semiannually under 7 AAC 27.012.