Paternal Occupational Exposure to 2,3, 7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-P-Dioxin and Birth Outcomes of Offspring: Birth Weight, Preterm Delivery, and Birth Defects

Details

• Personal Author:
  Connally LB ; Dankovic, David A. ; Deddens JA ; Lawson, Christina C. ; Piacitelli, Laurie A. ; Schnorr, Teresa M. ; Sweeney, Marie H. ; Whelan, Elizabeth A.
• Description:
  Agent Orange is a phenoxy herbicide that was contaminated with 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD). We studied pregnancy outcomes among wives of male chemical workers who were highly exposed to chemicals contaminated with TCDD and among wives of nonexposed neighborhood referents. For exposed pregnancies, we estimated serum TCDD concentration at the time of conception using a pharmacokinetic model. The mean TCDD concentration for workers' births was 254 pg/g lipid (range, 3-16,340 pg/g). The mean referent concentration of 6 pg/g was assigned to pregnancies fathered by workers before exposure. A total of 1,117 live singleton births of 217 referent wives and 176 worker wives were included. Only full-term births were included in the birth weight analysis ( 37 weeks of gestation). Mean birth weight among full-term babies was similar among referents' babies (n = 604), preexposure workers' babies (n = 221), and exposed workers' babies (n = 292) (3,420, 3,347, and 3,442 g, respectively). Neither continuous nor categorical TCDD concentration had an effect on birth weight for term infants after adjustment for infant sex, mother's education, parity, prenatal cigarette smoking, and gestation length. An analysis to estimate potential direct exposure of the wives during periods of workers' exposure yielded a nonstatistically significant increase in infant birth weight of 130 g in the highest exposure group (TCDD concentration > 254 pg/g) compared with referents (p = 0.09). Mothers' reports of preterm delivery showed a somewhat protective association with paternal TCDD (log) concentration (odds ratio = 0.8; 95% confidence interval, 0.6-1.1). We also include descriptive information on reported birth defects. Because the estimated TCDD concentrations in this population were much higher than in other studies, the results indicate that TCDD is unlikely to increase the risk of low birth weight or preterm delivery through a paternal mechanism. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Dioxins Epidemiology Herbicides Occupational Health Safety Urogenital Diseases Urogenital System
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Birth Defects Birth Weight Congenital Anomalies Dioxin Occupation Paternal Exposure Preterm Birth Reproductive-effects Reproductive-hazards Statistical-analysis TCDD

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• ISSN:
  0091-6765
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies ; EID - Education and Information Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  112
• Issue:
  14
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20025957
• Citation:
  Environ Health Perspect 2004 Oct; 112(14):1403-1408
• Contact Point Address:
  C.C. Lawson, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 4676 Columbia Pkwy (R-15), Cincinnati, OH 45226
• Email:
  CJL9@cdc.gov
• CAS Registry Number:
  (2,4-Dichlorophenoxy)acetic acid (CAS RN 94-75-7) ; 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (CAS RN 1746-01-6) ; Phenol, trichloro-, sodium salt (1:1) (CAS RN 1320-79-2) ; Trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (CAS RN 93-76-5)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2005
• NORA Priority Area:
  Disease and Injury: Fertility and Pregnancy Abnormalities
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Environmental Health Perspectives
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:439e30ae4c11024d8e5e64fa1d387e21388329ec20d0cbbf8dd6b4becc79ff212bd756c244d71bfa0a1e29cbca13ee1b4f92e93c4616e4afdfc07d1e68f86658
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/197112/cdc_197112_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 125.25 KB ]