The CHARGE Study: An Assessment of Parental Occupational Exposures and Autism Spectrum Disorder

Details

• Personal Author:
  Fekedulegn D ; Gu JK ; Hertz-Picciotto I ; Ludena-Rodriguez YJ ; Ma CC ; McCanlies EC ; Sanderson, Wayne T.
• Description:
  Objectives: The aim of this study is to determine if parental occupational exposure to 16 agents is associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Methods: Demographic, health and parental occupational data were collected as part of the CHildhood Autism Risks from Genetics and Environment study. The workplace exposure assessment was conducted by two experienced industrial hygienists for the parents of 537 children with ASD and 414 typically developing (TD) children. For each job, frequency and intensity of 16 agents were assessed and both binary and semi-quantitative cumulative exposure variables were derived. Logistic regression models were used to calculate adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) to assess associations between parental occupational exposures 3 months pre-pregnancy until birth. Results: The OR of ASD in the children of mothers exposed to any solvents was 1.5 times higher than the mothers of TD children (95% CI=1.01-2.23). Cumulative exposure indicated that the OR associated with a moderate level of solvent exposure in mothers was 1.85 (95% CI=1.09, 3.15) for children with ASD compared with TD children. No other exposures were associated with ASD in mothers, fathers or the parents combined. Conclusion: Maternal occupational exposure to solvents may increase the risk for ASD. These results are consistent with a growing body of evidence indicating that environmental and occupational exposures may be associated with ASD. Future research should consider specific types of solvents, larger samples and/or different study designs to evaluate other exposures for potential associations with ASD. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Demography Environmental Exposure Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety Solvents
• Keywords:
  ASDs Autism Spectrum Disorders Chemical Agents Demographic Characteristics Environmental Exposure Industrial Hygiene Models Occupational Exposure
• ISSN:
  1351-0711
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; Kentucky ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 9 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  76
• Issue:
  9
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20056321
• Citation:
  Occup Environ Med 2019 Sep; 76(9):644-651
• Contact Point Address:
  Dr. Erin C McCanlies, Health Effects Laboratory, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Morgantown, WV 26505
• Email:
  eim4@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2019
• Performing Organization:
  University of Kentucky, Lexington
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20120701
• Source Full Name:
  Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• End Date:
  20240630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:1c3244d95160f7303532c667e427045026aa23bf16b3f6dccb130dca3d03dfb7134ffe94af333e0d47e80756a9417a5b953ebf667a8085eaea320ac6101b0d6f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/213950/cdc_213950_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 297.81 KB ]