October 11, 2017
Fevers in a mother’s first trimester of pregnancy increase the baby’s risk for some heart defects and facial deformities such as cleft lip or palate, but exactly how this happens is unclear. Scientists have debated whether a virus or other infection causes the defects, or if fever alone is the problem.
UC Berkeley researchers have helped find evidence indicating that the fever itself, not its cause, is what interferes with the development of the heart and jaw during the first three to eight weeks of pregnancy.
Read more from Berkeley News | October 11th, 2017: https://news.berkeley.edu/2017/10/11/fever-in-early-pregnancy-linked-to-birth-defects-animal-study-shows/