Five babies on the same street are born with 1-in-7,000 defect

Mothers are demanding a government investigation after it emerged that five women living in the same street have given birth to babies with the same rare defect.

All five babies suffered gastroschisis, a bowel condition which usually affects one in every 7,000 newborns.

It causes a hole in the abdominal wall through which some of the intestine is protruding, and means the children could need regular treatment, including blood transfusions even following initial surgery after birth.

The babies, who have been born over the past 12 years, all live or have lived in a street called Waterdales in Northfleet, Kent. The mothers only found out about the coincidence by chatting to neighbours and relatives.

They believe the defects were caused by construction work disturbing a former rubbish tip which may have put dangerous particles into the air or water supply.

Sonia Dalton, 35, said her daughter Mikka, now three, was diagnosed during a 21-week scan and demanded that Health Secretary Andrew Lansley investigate the cases.

Mikka was in intensive care for five weeks after birth and needed major surgery. She has to have hospital check-ups and needs medicine daily.

Mrs Dalton said: "Years ago there was an old refuse tip behind our street and more recently there has been a hell of a lot of building work going on.

"We're wondering if something has been disturbed and got into the air or water.

"We're asking for a government investigation because we want to know what the cause is."

Adam Holloway, Tory MP for Gravesham in Kent, has written to Mr Lansley calling for an inquiry and believes a possible cause of the defects could be farm pesticides.

He said: "I think a health investigation would be a very good idea."

Another mother, Juliet Green, 39, said her daughter, Courtney, 10, was diagnosed with the condition at birth. She said: "We want to see if other parents have had problems and see if anything can be done."