Prenatal Exposure to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) and Adverse Birth Outcomes in Infants: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Year: 2022
Type: conference-abstract
Abstract: Background: Research indicates prenatal exposure to PAHs may be associated with adverse birth outcomes, although there are conflicting research results. A weight of evidence approach is needed. Aim: Summarize eligible evidence of prenatal PAH exposure on birth outcomes in infants. Methods: Using a priori search strategy, we conducted a systematic review (SR) to identify eligible peer-reviewed studies in English, in PubMed, Wed of Science, and Google Scholar. Eligible studies modeled or measured PAH exposure during pregnancy or at the end of pregnancy, with no limits on study time-period or geography. Two reviewers, working independently, followed PRISMA protocol. Risk of bias assessment followed Navigation Guide protocol. Of 2,244 studies identified, 40 were included in final meta-analysis. Birth outcomes were grouped into either dichotomous (summary effect measure: odds ratio) or continuous outcomes (Cohen’s d). We report the summary effect size of each birth outcome, 95%CI, and I2. Results: We found a statistically significant positive association in dichotomous outcomes between prenatal PAH and the combined low birth weight/fetal growth restriction < 85% of normal (OR: 1.07; 95%CI:1.03,1.11; p<0.001; npooled=545,587; I2=76.9%), and in the combined small for gestational age/intrauterine growth restriction (1.19; 95%CI:1.03,1.37; p=0.016; npooled=226,096; I2=88.2%); and a marginal positive association with preterm birth (1.09; 95%CI:0.99,1.20; p=0.074; npooled=92,310; I2=77.9%). In continuous outcomes, we found a statistically significant negative association between prenatal PAH exposure and birth weight, in grams (Cohen’s d: -0.160, 95%CI:-0.29,-0.03; p=0.017; npooled=41,493; I2=96.6%), and in head circumference, in cm (-0.091, 95%CI:-0.17,-0.02; p=0.019; npooled=5,772; I2=71.0%); and a marginal negative association between prenatal PAH exposure and birth length, in cm (-0.161; 95%CI:-0.34,0.02; p=0.080; npooled=39,857; I2=97.7%). Conclusion: There is limited human evidence that prenatal PAH exposure adversely affects birth outcomes. Between-study variance was moderate to high. However, limited human evidence of adverse effects associated with prenatal exposures to common environmental pollutants is cause for concern.
Source: ISEE Conference Abstracts
Institution: Oregon State University
Language: English
Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4316924474