by Bryant Furlow
epiNewswire
August 26, 2007—Infants whose mothers are exposed to
pesticides at work during pregnancy have a 37 percent
greater risk of being born with orofacial cleft defects like
cleft palate, according to researchers from the University
of Iowa. The findings were based on a meta-analysis of
data from 19 previously published studies, chosen from
230 studies initially identified from the medical literature.
Fathers' occupational pesticide exposures were not
significantly related to cleft defects when data from the
19 studies were pooled, despite a trend towards
increased risk.
"Future studies should consider evaluation of multiple
routes of paternal exposure...and individual genetic
susceptibility," the authors argue.
epiNewswire
August 26, 2007—Infants whose mothers are exposed to
pesticides at work during pregnancy have a 37 percent
greater risk of being born with orofacial cleft defects like
cleft palate, according to researchers from the University
of Iowa. The findings were based on a meta-analysis of
data from 19 previously published studies, chosen from
230 studies initially identified from the medical literature.
Fathers' occupational pesticide exposures were not
significantly related to cleft defects when data from the
19 studies were pooled, despite a trend towards
increased risk.
"Future studies should consider evaluation of multiple
routes of paternal exposure...and individual genetic
susceptibility," the authors argue.
| Further reading Romitti, PA, et al. 2007. Meta-analysis: pesticides and orofacial clefts. Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal, 44(4): 358-365. |
Meta-analysis finds that mothers' occupational exposures during pregnancy increase risk of clefts
Birth Defects
Prenatal exposure to pesticides increases risk of birth defects
Statistical details Source data for the meta-analysis: 19 studies of 230 reviewed for inclusion criteria Odds ratio (OR) for maternal occupational pesticide exposure and offspring orofacial cleft risk = 1.37 (95% confidence intervals: 1.04,1.81) Paternal occupational pesticide exposure and risk of offspring orofacial cleft: OR = 1.16 (CI: 0.94, 1.44) |
Pesticides can disrupt development of the fetal face and mouth,
according to a new meta-analysis, causing cleft defects
according to a new meta-analysis, causing cleft defects