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Prenatal exposure to cigarette smoking is associated with a decrease in arousal in infants
P Franco1, J Groswasser, S Hassid
1Pediatric Sleep Unit, Erasmus Hospital, Free University of Brussels, Brussels, Belgium.
Insights
Infants exposed to prenatal cigarette smoke had higher auditory arousal thresholds. This indicates that maternal smoking during pregnancy impacts infant sleep arousal, potentially increasing risks for sudden infant death syndrome.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal research
- Sleep studies
- Public health
Background:
- Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is linked to prenatal smoke exposure and impaired sleep arousal.
- Maternal smoking during pregnancy is a known risk factor for SIDS.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if infants born to mothers who smoked during pregnancy exhibit higher auditory arousal thresholds compared to infants of non-smokers.
- To determine if the effects of maternal smoking on arousal thresholds manifest before birth.
Main Methods:
- Polygraphic recordings were used to study 26 newborns and 42 infants (median age 12 weeks).
- Participants were categorized based on maternal smoking status during pregnancy (smokers vs. non-smokers).
- Auditory arousal and awakening thresholds were assessed using white noise stimuli during REM sleep.
Main Results:
- Newborns and infants of mothers who smoked required more intense auditory stimuli to elicit arousal.
- A statistically significant difference was observed in arousal thresholds for both newborns (P=.002) and infants (P=.044).
- Behavioral awakening occurred less frequently in newborns exposed to smoke prenatally (P=.002).
Conclusions:
- Prenatal exposure to maternal cigarette smoke is associated with elevated auditory arousal thresholds in infants.
- The findings suggest that the impact of smoking on infant arousal mechanisms occurs during fetal development.
- This highlights a critical window for intervention to mitigate SIDS risk factors.
Objective:
Sudden infant death syndrome has been related to both exposure to prenatal cigarette smoke and impaired arousability from sleep. We evaluated whether healthy infants born to mothers who smoked during pregnancy had higher auditory arousal thresholds than those born to mothers who did not smoke and whether the effects of smoking occurred before birth.
Study Design:
Twenty-six newborns were studied with polygraphic recordings for 1 night: 13 were born to mothers who did not smoke, and 13 were born to mothers who smoked (>9 cigarettes per day). Other infants with a median postnatal age of 12 weeks were also studied, 21 born to nonsmoking mothers and 21 born to smoking mothers. White noise of increasing intensity was administered during rapid eye movement sleep to evaluate arousal and awakening thresholds.
Results:
More intense auditory stimuli were needed to induce arousals in newborns (P =.002) and infants (P =. 044) of smokers than in infants of nonsmokers. Behavioral awakening occurred significantly less frequently in the newborns of smokers (P =.002) than of nonsmokers.
Conclusions:
Newborns and infants born to smoking mothers had higher arousal thresholds to auditory challenges than those born to nonsmoking mothers. The impact of exposure to cigarette smoke occurred before birth.