Maternal occupational exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and craniosynostosis among offspring in the national birth defects prevention study
Open accessAbstract
Background: Evidence in animal models and humans suggests that exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) may lead to birth defects. To our knowledge, this relationship has not been evaluated for craniosynostosis, a birth defect characterized by the premature closure of sutures in the skull. We conducted a case‐control study to examine associations between maternal occupational exposure to PAHs and craniosynostosis. Methods: We used data from craniosynostosis cases and control infants in the National Birth Defects Prevention Study (NBDPS) with estimated delivery dates from 1997 to 2002. Industrial hygienists reviewed occupational data from the computer‐assisted telephone interview and assigned a yes/no rating of probable occupational PAH exposure for each job from 1 month before conception through delivery. We used logistic regression to assess the association between occupational exposure to PAHs and craniosynostosis. Results: The prevalence of exposure was 5.3% in case mothers (16/300) and 3.7% in control mothers (107/2,886). We observed a positive association between exposure to PAHs during the 1 month before conception through the third month of pregnancy and craniosynostosis (odds ratio [OR] = 1.75; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01–3.05) after adjusting for maternal age and maternal education. The number of cases for each craniosynostosis subtype limited subtype analyses to sagittal craniosynostosis; the odds ratio remained similar (OR = 1.76, 95% CI, 0.82–3.75), but was not significant. Conclusion: Our findings support a moderate association between maternal occupational exposure to PAHs and craniosynostosis. Additional work is needed to better characterize susceptibility and the role PAHs may play on specific craniosynostosis subtypes. Birth Defects Research (Part A) 106:55–60, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Maternal occupation can increase exposure of metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to the foetus.
“Another important factor that can influence skull growth and correct bone differentiation is maternal occupation, which can increase the exposure of metals [114, 118] and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to the foetus [89].”
From Genetics versus environment in the pathophysiology of sagittal synostosis (2026) · cites this paper as [89]
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“Another important factor that can influence skull growth and correct bone differentiation is maternal occupation, which can increase the exposure of metals [114, 118] and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to the foetus [89].”
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- Authors
- O'Brien, J. L., Langlois, P. H., Lawson, C. C., Scheuerle, A., Rocheleau, C. M., Waters, M. A., Symanski, E., Romitti, P. A., Agopian, A. J., Lupo, P. J., & Study, T. N. B. D. P.
- Affiliations
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology Baylor College of Medicine Houston Texas
- Texas Department of State Health Services (US)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US)
- The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (US)
- Division of Epidemiology Human Genetics and Environmental Sciences University of Texas School of Public Health Houston Texas
- University of Iowa (US)
- Baylor College of Medicine (US)
- Corresponding author
- Lupo, Philip J.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Birth Defects Research Part A: Clinical and Molecular Teratology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2015-06-02
- Volume
- 106
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 55-60
- ISSN
- 1542-0752 (ISSN-L)
- 1542-0760
- PMC
- PMC4668225
- OpenAlex
- W1545722552
- Cited by
- 31
- References
- 23
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 6 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 2
- FWCI
- 0.91
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Birth Defects Research Part A Clinical and Molecular Teratology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- NIH (R03DE021739)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) (U01DD000494)
- National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (200-2000-08018)
- Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grants Funds from the Office of Title V and Family Health
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Craniofacial Disorders and Treatments
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Toxic Organic Pollutants Impact
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Occupational Therapy › Occupational Health and Safety in Workplaces
- Keywords
- polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, maternal occupational exposure, craniosynostosis, congenital malformations, prenatal exposure, sagittal craniosynostosis, National Birth Defects Prevention Study, prenatal environmental exposure
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Craniosynostoses, Female, Humans, Infant, Newborn, Male, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Pregnancy, Surveys and Questionnaires, Retrospective Studies, United States, Prevalence, Odds Ratio, Case-Control Studies, Occupational Exposure, Maternal Exposure
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