Introduction:

Consanguinity continues to be a universal phenomenon. Nowadays, consanguineous marriages and their descendants are estimated at 10,4% of the world population; their descendants have a high probability of suffering recessive Mendelian diseases, as well as complex diseases of multifactorial nature.

Objectives:

To determine the inbreeding coefficient of the region and the main affectations found in offspring of consanguineous marriages.

Methods:

A descriptive, applied and retrospective cross-sectional research on the inbreeding coefficient was conducted at Paso Quemado Popular Council, Los Palacios Municipality, Pinar del Río, from May 2016 to February 2017.

Results:

We identified 11 consanguineous marriages (1.96%), mostly in rural areas and among first cousins. The average inbreeding coefficient was 0.00115. After the 70's, there was no occurrence of consanguineous marriages. Affectations such as infant mortality, rare monogenic diseases, congenital malformations, mild intellectual disability and common diseases appeared more frequently in the offspring of first cousins.

Conclusions:

In correspondence with the opening of new social, economic and educational opportunities in the region, consanguinity does not constitute a health problem nowadays; however, mostly complex diseases affected 52.5% of offspring in consanguineous couples. The study lays the foundations to establish a health education and promotion strategy at the community level.

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