Can rubella in early pregnancy cause baby to have spina bifida ?

Rubella/spina bifida: This is not a known risk factor. The exact cause of spina bifida is unknown. It is felt that the cause is multifactoral: genetic, nutritional, and environmental factors play a role. Folic acid deficiency during pregnancy plays a role, but infection with rubella is not reported to do this.

Unlikely : The neural tube defects are considered a random event and are present by ~ 28 days into the pregnancy. Rubella that occurs this early in pregnancy would more likely cause fetal loss, although a heart and eye defects would also be possible.