Maternal exposure to arsenic in drinking water and risk of congenital heart disease in the offspring
- PMID: 34942407
- DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2021.107051
Maternal exposure to arsenic in drinking water and risk of congenital heart disease in the offspring
Abstract
Introduction: Prenatal exposure to arsenic is suspected to impair fetal health, including congenital malformations. Few studies investigated an association between maternal exposure to arsenic and congenital heart disease.
Objective: To examine the association between maternal exposure to arsenic through drinking water and congenital heart disease among offspring.
Methods: This nationwide cohort study included all liveborn children in Denmark, 1997-2014. Maternal addresses at fetal age 4 weeks were linked to drinking water supply areas. Exposure was arsenic concentration in drinking water in first trimester in four categories (<0.5 μg/L, 0.5-0.9 μg/L, 1.0-4.9 μg/L, ≥5.0 μg/L). Outcomes were defined as congenital heart disease diagnosed within the first year of life, with sub-categorization of severe, septal defects and valvular heart defect. Associations between arsenic levels and congenital heart disease were analysed using logistic regression, presented as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI), and adjusted for year of birth, mother's educational level and ethnicity.
Results: A total of 1,042,413 liveborn children were included of whom 1.0% had a congenital heart disease. The OR of congenital heart disease was higher among children exposed to all levels of arsenic above 0.5 μg/L; the OR was 1.13 (95% CI: 1.08-1.19) for exposure of 0.5-0.9 μg/L, 1.33 (95% CI: 1.27-1.39) for 1.0-4.9 μg/L and 1.42 (95% CI: 1.24-1.63) for ≥5.0 μg/L. Similar associations were observed for congenital septal defects. The OR was also higher for severe congenital heart disease but at the same level among all exposure levels ≥0.5 μg/L. The OR of congenital valvular heart defects was only higher among children with maternal exposure to arsenic in drinking water ≥5.0 μg/L. The associations were similar for boys and girls.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that maternal exposure to arsenic in drinking water even at low concentrations (i.e., 0.5-0.9 μg/L) increased the risk of congenital heart disease in the offspring.
Keywords: Arsenic; Congenital heart disease; Drinking water; Maternal exposure; Population-based individual-level registers; Prenatal.
Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Similar articles
-
Arsenic in drinking water and congenital heart anomalies in Hungary.Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2014 Nov;217(8):813-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2014.05.002. Epub 2014 May 22. Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2014. PMID: 24916166
-
In utero exposure to arsenic in tap water and congenital anomalies: A French semi-ecological study.Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2018 Sep;221(8):1116-1123. doi: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2018.07.012. Epub 2018 Jul 30. Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2018. PMID: 30072236
-
A prospective cohort study of the association between drinking water arsenic exposure and self-reported maternal health symptoms during pregnancy in Bangladesh.Environ Health. 2014 Apr 16;13(1):29. doi: 10.1186/1476-069X-13-29. Environ Health. 2014. PMID: 24735908 Free PMC article.
-
Association between maternal exposure to arsenic by drinking water during pregnancy and risk of preterm birth: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Int J Environ Health Res. 2024 Aug;34(8):2947-2956. doi: 10.1080/09603123.2023.2280155. Epub 2023 Nov 15. Int J Environ Health Res. 2024. PMID: 37967266 Review.
-
Arsenic in drinking water and urinary tract cancers: a systematic review of 30 years of epidemiological evidence.Environ Health. 2014 Jun 2;13:44. doi: 10.1186/1476-069X-13-44. Environ Health. 2014. PMID: 24889821 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Prenatal arsenite exposure alters maternal cardiac remodeling during late pregnancy.Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2024 Feb;483:116833. doi: 10.1016/j.taap.2024.116833. Epub 2024 Jan 23. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2024. PMID: 38266874
-
Update of the risk assessment of inorganic arsenic in food.EFSA J. 2024 Jan 18;22(1):e8488. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2024.8488. eCollection 2024 Jan. EFSA J. 2024. PMID: 38239496 Free PMC article.
-
Characterization of Arsenic and Atrazine Contaminations in Drinking Water in Iowa: A Public Health Concern.Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Apr 4;20(7):5397. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20075397. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023. PMID: 37048011 Free PMC article.
-
Exposure to essential and non-essential trace elements and risks of congenital heart defects: A narrative review.Front Nutr. 2023 Mar 14;10:1121826. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2023.1121826. eCollection 2023. Front Nutr. 2023. PMID: 36998909 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Removal of arsenic as a potentially toxic element from drinking water by filtration: A mini review of nanofiltration and reverse osmosis techniques.Heliyon. 2023 Mar 4;9(3):e14246. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14246. eCollection 2023 Mar. Heliyon. 2023. PMID: 36938422 Free PMC article. Review.
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical