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Preliminary report on the first Brazilian teratogen information service (SIAT)

Lavinia Schuler; Maria Teresa Sanseverino; Hernando Augusto Clavijo; Patricia Ashton-Prolla; Karen Boianowsky; Fernando Pecis; Fabricio Silva Costa; Érica Tatto; Vee Wong; Carmem Vinhas Santos; Roberto Giugliani

SIAT, Unidade dc Genética Médica, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Rua Ramiro Barcelos 2350, 90035-003 Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. Fax (051) 332-9661 or 3328324. Send correspondence to L.S.

ABSTRACT

The National System of information about Teratogenic Agents (SIAT) was set up in Porto Alegre, Southern Brazil, in 1990, with the purpose of providing doctors and the general public with rapid and updated information about the reproductive risks related to exposure to teratogenic agents. SIAT, which was the first service of this kind to operate in Latin America, is also an important source of data for prospective investigations about teratogenicity in humans. In this paper we report the preliminary experience of this service and its possible contributions. The introduction in 1992 of similar services in the two main Brazilian cities (Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo) and the operation of all three services within an integrated and coordinated national network enhance the potential of this service both at the health care and research levels.

Keywords: teratogen; information; agents.

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