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. 2017 Apr;90(3):255-264.
doi: 10.1007/s00420-016-1192-9. Epub 2017 Feb 7.

Prenatal exposure to fine particles and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and birth outcomes: a two-pollutant approach

W A Jedrychowski  1 , Renata Majewska  2 , J D Spengler  3 , David Camann  4 , E L Roen  5 , F P Perera  5
Affiliations

Prenatal exposure to fine particles and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and birth outcomes: a two-pollutant approach

W A Jedrychowski et al. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 2017 Apr.

Abstract

Background: Previous epidemiologic studies have considered the effects of individual air pollutants on birth outcomes, whereas a multiple-pollutant approach is more relevant to public health policy.

Objectives: The present study compared the observed effect sizes of prenatal fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) (a component of PM2.5) exposures on birth outcome deficits, assessed by the single vs. two-pollutant approaches.

Methods: The study sample included 455 term infants born in Krakow to non-smoking mothers, among whom personal exposures to PM2.5 and PAH were monitored in the second trimester of pregnancy. The exposure effect estimates (unstandardized and standardized regression coefficients) on birth outcomes were determined using multivariable linear regression models, accounting for relevant covariates.

Results: In the single-pollutant approach, each pollutant was inversely associated with all birth outcomes. The effect size of prenatal PAH exposure on birth weight and length was twice that of PM2.5, in terms of standardized coefficients. In the two-pollutant approach, the negative effect of PM2.5 on birth weight and length, adjusted for PAH exposure, lost its significance. The standardized effect of PAH on birth weight was 10-fold stronger (β = -0.20, p = 0.004) than that estimated for PM2.5 (β = -0.02, p = 0.757).

Conclusion: The results provide evidence that PAH had a greater impact on several measures of fetal development, especially birth weight, than PM2.5. Though in the single-pollutant models PM2.5 had a significant impact on birth outcomes, this effect appears to be mediated by PAH.

Keywords: Birth outcomes; Krakow cohort; PAH; PM2.5; Prenatal exposure.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Comparison of the relationship between PM2.5 and PAH (ln-transformed) concentrations measured in the 2nd trimester of pregnancy, grouped by season and in the total study group
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Individual variability of the PAH-PM2.5 ratio in study subjects over the heating and non-heating seasons
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Patterns of the relationship between prenatal exposure to PM2.5 and PAH (concentrations transformed to z scores) for predicted birth weight (g)
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Patterns of the relationship between prenatal exposure to PM2.5 and PAH (concentrations transformed in z scores) for predicted birth length (cm)
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Patterns of the relationship between prenatal exposure to PM2.5 and PAH (concentrations transformed in z scores) for predicted HC at birth (cm)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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