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. 2023 Jan 1;216(Pt 4):114830.
doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.114830. Epub 2022 Nov 15.

Prenatal exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers and birth outcomes

Aalekhya Reddam  1 , Andreas Sjödin  2 , Whitney Cowell  3 , Richard Jones  2 , Shuang Wang  4 , Frederica Perera  5 , Julie B Herbstman  5 , Allison Kupsco  5
Affiliations

Prenatal exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers and birth outcomes

Aalekhya Reddam et al. Environ Res. .

Abstract

Background: Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were used as flame retardants and from their end-use products they can be released to accumulate within indoor environments. This may result in exposures to pregnant women with potential adverse effects on the developing fetus. While studies have shown associations between prenatal PBDE exposure and poor birth outcomes, research has mainly focused on birth weight and gestational age and may miss important indicators of newborn size.

Methods: The sample included a cohort of Dominican and African American mother-child pairs from New York City recruited from 1998 to 2006. PBDE congeners (BDE-47, BDE-99, BDE-100, and BDE-153) were measured in cord serum at birth and dichotomized into low (<80th percentile) and high (>80th percentile) categories. Weight, length, head circumference, and gestational age were measured at birth and the ponderal index (birth weight/length x 100), size for gestational age, and population-based z-scores were calculated (n = 305). Separate regression analyses were conducted to estimate associations between PBDEs or PBDE sum (ng/g lipid) and birth outcomes. Quantile g-computation was performed to estimate the effect of total PBDE mixture. We also assessed effect modification by sex and ethnicity.

Results: Adjusting for relevant covariates, the high exposure category of BDE-153 was associated with lower birth weight z-score (-0.25, 95% CI: -0.5, 0.0) and longer gestation (0.43 weeks, 95% CI: 0.07, 0.79). The high exposure category of BDE-99 was associated with lower birth length z-score (-0.55, 95% CI: -0.98, -0.12). There was a negative association between the overall PBDE mixture and birth length z-score (-0.10, 95% CI: -0.21, 0.00) per 1 quintile increase in PBDEs. There was no effect modification by sex or ethnicity.

Conclusions: These results suggest that prenatal exposures to BDE-153, BDE-99, and total PBDE mixture are associated with birth outcomes in a cohort of Dominican and African American newborns.

Keywords: Birth outcomes; Mixtures; Polybrominated diphenyl ethers; Prenatal exposure.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Effect estimates from multivariable regression models examining the associations of dichotomized PBDE concentrations in cord blood serum on child birth outcomes. Error bars around effect estimates represent 95% confidence intervals. Models were adjusted for maternal age, race/ethnicity, pre-pregnancy BMI, completion of high school, parity, environmental tobacco smoke exposure, receipt of public assistance, any reports of financial hardship, and married or partnered at birth. Models assessing birth weight were additionally adjusted for gestational age.
Figure 2:
Figure 2:
Proportion of overall effect from each PBDE on birth outcomes averaged across 10 imputations.
Figure 3:
Figure 3:
Associations of dichotomized PBDEs in cord blood with birth outcomes stratified by sex. Error bars around effect estimates represent 95% confidence intervals.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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