Association between exposure to air pollution during pregnancy and false positives in fetal heart rate monitoring

The effect of toxic air pollutants on fertility men and women, fetus and birth rate

Human health is affected by various factors such as air pollutants. Exposure to toxic air pollutants is impaired fertility in men and women. The purpose of this review study was investigation of the effect of toxic air pollutants on fertility and birth rate. Databases used to for searched were the PubMed, Web of Science, Springer and Science Direct (Scopus) and Google Scholar. Identify all relevant studies published 1999-2022. In this study, according to databases five hundred articles were retrieved. 33 studies were screened after review and 19 full-text articles entered into the analysis process. Finally, 11 articles were selected in this study. The literature signs a notable health effects from toxic air pollutants and increase risk of infertility in men and women and having a variety of reproductive system cancers such as prostate, bladder, ovary, kidney and uterus. According to the finding toxic air pollutants can increase the risk infertility in men and women, incidence of cancers of reproductive system and decrease the birth rate. Activities that play an important role in reducing the health effects of toxic air pollutants such as infertility in men and women and reducing the population rate of communities are improving the quality of fuel used in the home, car, industries, changing production processes in large industries, installing catalysts to reduce emissions in cars, use more public transportation, plant trees and increase green space per capita, increase public awareness about various effects of toxic air pollutants and protective measures.

Cellular mechanisms linking to outdoor and indoor air pollution damage during pregnancy

Pregnancies are a critical window period for environmental influences over the mother and the offspring. There is a growing body of evidence associating indoor and outdoor air pollution exposure to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. Particulate matter (PM) could trigger oxi-inflammation and could also reach the placenta leading to placental damage with fetal consequences. The combination of strategies such as risk assessment, advise about risks of environmental exposures to pregnant women, together with nutritional strategies and digital solutions to monitor air quality can be effective in mitigating the effects of air pollution during pregnancy.

Associations between air pollution exposure and birth defects: a time series analysis

Air pollution is a serious environmental problem in China. Birth defects are particularly vulnerable to outdoor air pollution. Our study was to evaluate the association between short-term exposure to air pollutants and the risk of birth defects. Daily data including the air pollutants, meteorological characteristics, and birth records were obtained in Hefei, China, during January 2013 to December 2016. The findings showed that PM_2.5, PM₁₀, SO₂, NO₂, and O₃ exposures were positively correlated with the risk of birth defects. Maternal exposure to PM_2.5 and SO₂ during the 4th to 13th gestational weeks was observed to have a significant association with the risk of birth defects, with the maximum effect in the 7th or 8th week for PM_2.5 and the maximum effect in the 7th week for SO₂. The positively significant exposure windows were the 4th to 14th weeks for PM₁₀, the 4th to 12th weeks for NO₂, and the 26th to 35th weeks for O₃, respectively. The strongest associations were observed in the 8th week for PM₁₀, the 7th week for NO₂, and in the 31st or 32nd week for O_3. The findings of this study demonstrate that air pollutants increase the risk of birth defects among women during pregnancy in Hefei, China, which provide evidence for improving the health of pregnant women and neonates in developing countries, and uncovered potential opportunities to reduce or prevent birth defects by proactive measures during pregnancy.

Non-reassuring foetal status and neonatal irritability in the Japan Environment and Children's Study: A cohort study

The aim of this study was to investigate whether non-reassuring foetal status (NRFS) affected an infant's temperament, or if the temperament formed prenatally resulted in an excessive heart rate reaction that was diagnosed as NRFS. We examined the correlation between NRFS and difficulty in holding a baby, and the amount of crying in the one month after birth, which was considered an indicator of the newborn's temperament. We divided the cases with NRFS into positive NRFS and false positive NRFS. NRFS was associated with bad mood, frequent crying for a long duration, and intense crying. After adjustment for other covariates, NRFS was associated with bad mood (odds ratio, OR = 1.15, 95% confidence interval, CI = 1.00-1.33), and intense crying (1.12, 1.02-1.24). In the multi-variable model, positive and false positive NRFS were not clearly associated with neonatal irritability. When stratified by parity, NRFS and false positive NRFS were likely to be positively associated with neonatal irritability in parous women. The clear association between NRFS and intense crying was observed in parous women (multi-variable adjusted OR = 1.46, 95% CI = 1.16-1.83), but not in nulliparae (1.01, 0.91-1.12) (p for effect modification <0.01). Similarly, increased odds of intense crying associated with false positive NRFS were only found in parous women (multi-variable adjusted OR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.09-1.81) (p for effect modification = 0.03). There was no association observed between positive NRFS and irritability; therefore, NRFS has no effect on an infant's temperament.