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A population-based case–control study of the association between weather-related extreme heat events and low birthweight

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 May 2020

Wayne R. Lawrence Open the ORCID record for Wayne R. Lawrence [Opens in a new window] ,
Aida Soim ,
Wangjian Zhang ,
Ziqiang Lin ,
Yi Lu ,
Emily A. Lipton ,
Jianpeng Xiao ,
Guang-Hui Dong  and
Shao Lin
Wayne R. Lawrence
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
Aida Soim
Affiliation:
Congenital Malformations Registry, New York State Department of Health, Albany, NY, USA Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
Wangjian Zhang
Affiliation:
Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
Ziqiang Lin
Affiliation:
Department of Mathematics and Statistics, College of Arts and Sciences, University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany, NY, USA Department of Psychiatry, New York University Langone School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
Yi Lu
Affiliation:
Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
Emily A. Lipton
Affiliation:
Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
Jianpeng Xiao
Affiliation:
Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
Guang-Hui Dong
Affiliation:
Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
Shao Lin*
Affiliation:
Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY, USA
*
Address for correspondence: Shao Lin, Department of Environmental Health Science, School of Public Health, Rm 212 d, University at Albany, State University of New York, One University Place, Rensselaer, NY, USA. Email: slin@albany.edu
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Abstract

Although prenatal exposure to high ambient temperatures were reported to be associated with preterm birth, limited research assessed the impact of weather-related extreme heat events (EHE) on birthweight, particularly by trimester. We, therefore, investigated the impact of prenatal EHE on birthweight among term babies (tLBW) by trimester and birthweight percentile. We conducted a population-based case–control study on singleton live births at 38–42 gestational weeks in New York State (NYS) by linking weather data with NYS birth certificates. A total of 22,615 cases were identified as birthweight <2500 gram, and a random sample of 139,168 normal birthweight controls was included. EHE was defined as three consecutive days with the maximum temperatures of ≥32.2 °C/90 °F (EHE90) and two consecutive days of temperatures ≥97th percentile (EHE97) based on the distribution of the maximum temperature for the season and region. We estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) with multivariable unconditional logistic regression, controlling for confounders. Overall exposure to EHE97 for 2 d was associated with tLBW (OR 1.05; 95% CI 1.02, 1.09); however, the strongest associations were only observed in the first trimester for both heat indicators, especially when exposure was ≥3 d (ORs ranged: 1.06–1.13). EHE in the first trimester was associated with significant reduction in mean birthweight from 26.78 gram (EHE90) to 36.25 gram (EHE97), which mainly affected the 40th and 60th birthweight percentiles. Findings revealed associations between multiple heat indicators and tLBW, where the impact was consistently strongest in the first trimester.

Keywords

Low birthweightclimate changetemperatureextreme weather
Type
Original Article
Information
Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease , Volume 12 , Issue 2 , April 2021 , pp. 335 - 342
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Copyright
© Cambridge University Press and the International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease 2020

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