Beijing will host the Second International Conference on Birth Defects and Disabilities in the Developing World from Sept. 11 to 14, with estimated 1,200 participants from dozens of countries, an official with the organizing committee said in Beijing Thursday.

Birth defects refer to inborn abnormality. There are about 5 million infants born with birth defects and disabilities every year, with 85 percent in developing countries.

China is one of the countries with high incidence of birth defects, with 800,000 to 1.2 million infants born with birth defects and disabilities annually, accounting for four to six percent of the country's total newborns.

An official with the World Health Organization (WHO) said that with more epidemics prevented and controlled, birth defects have gradually been the main cause of infant and child mortality.

The upcoming conference aims to promote developing countries to prevent birth defects and disabilities, as well as provide a platform for scientists to exchange experience in preventing birth defects and disabilities.

The conference is jointly sponsored by the World Health Organization, China's Ministry of Health, Peking University Health Center and the All-China Women's Federation.

(Xinhua News Agency August 5, 2005)