For several years I have begun this section on "congenital deformities" with a description of the experiments conducted by Josef Warkany. Each year he and his workers have given additional information on the cause of some of the congenital deformities. This past year has brought information on how to prevent deformities.
In times past, various authors have attributed congenital malformations to a maternal nutritional deficiency. Warkany and Schraffenberger,26 after establishing a set pattern of deformities which follow what they call diet I, made various additions to the diet, trying to prevent deformities. They found first that 2 per cent pig liver would prevent deformities. A search was made for the preventive factor in pig liver. After studying hundreds of litters of rats, they give the following conclusions:
The congenital malformations of the pattern of diet I are prevented when the maternal diet I is supplemented by riboflavin. Supplements of