Abstract
Micro and macro peripheral blood cultures were set up from 185 test (mothers who had taken oral contraceptives) and 181 control mothers. Cord bloods were collected from infants of these mothers at the time of delivery. In a pilot study, mitotic indices were used to determine the best culture technique. The cytogenetic characteristics of the peripheral lymphocytes from the mothers and babies were then evaluated. It was found that there was no significant difference in the frequency or type of chromosome abnormalities between the test and control mothers. However, there was found to be an increase in the numbers of triploid cells and structural aberrations in the test babies group compared to the control group. Maternal age, previous obstetric history, menstrual history, present pregnancy history, length of time the test mothers had been taking oral contraceptives, the interval between discontinuation and pregnancy, and the constituents of the contraceptives were not found to significantly affect the numbers and types of chromosome abnormalities. No increase in chromosome abnormalities was observed in the mothers who had been exposed to various additional hazards, such as X-rays, illnesses and drugs.