The relation of polychlorinated biphenyls to birth weight and gestational age in the offspring of occupationally exposed mothers

Journal Article · Wed Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1989 · American Journal of Epidemiology; (USA)

OSTI ID:5128362

Taylor, P R; Stelma, J M; Lawrence, C E ^[1]

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1. National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD (USA)

The authors studied the relation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) to birth weight and gestational age among the live offspring of women occupationally exposed to PCBs during the manufacture of capacitors in Upstate New York. Interviews were conducted in 1982 with 200 women who had held jobs with direct exposure and 205 women who had never held a direct-exposure job in order to ascertain information on reproductive history and other factors influencing reproductive outcome. Exposure was assessed as high-homolog PCB (Aroclor 1254), a continuous exposure variable estimated from an independently derived prediction model. After adjustment for variables other than gestational age known to influence birth weight, a significant effect of high-homolog exposure is seen for birth weight. For gestational age, a small but significant decrease is also observed with an increase in estimated exposure. When gestational age is accounted for in addition to other variables related to birth weight, estimated serum PCB is no longer a significant predictor of birth weight. The authors conclude that these data indicate that there is a significant relation between increased estimated serum PCB level and decreased birth weight and gestational age, and that the decrease in birth weight is at least partially related to shortened gestational age. The magnitude of these effects was quite small compared with those of other known determinants of gestational age and birth weight, and the biologic importance of these effects is likely to be negligible except among already low birth weight or short gestation infants.

• OSTI ID: 5128362
• Journal Information: American Journal of Epidemiology; (USA), Journal Name: American Journal of Epidemiology; (USA) Vol. 129:2; ISSN 0002-9262; ISSN AJEPA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

560300* -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
AGE GROUPS
AROMATICS
BLOOD SERUM
CAPACITORS
CHILDREN
CHLORINATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT
EPIDEMIOLOGY
EQUIPMENT
HALOGENATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
INFANTS
OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES
OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE
ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
PRENATAL EXPOSURE
TOXICITY
WEIGHT