Review of recent epidemiological studies on paternal occupations and birth defects

The main findings reported by recent epidemiological studies on paternal occupations and birth defects are reviewed, and the main limitations associated with these studies discussed. Epidemiological studies on paternal occupations and birth defects were reviewed for the period 1989 to 1999 inclusive. Systematic searches were made with search engines with related keywords. There were several common paternal occupations that were repeatedly reported to be associated with birth defects. These paternal occupations were janitors, painters, printers, and occupations exposed to solvents; fire fighters or firemen; and occupations related to agriculture. The common weaknesses in most of these studies include inaccurate assessment of exposures, different classification systems, different inclusion criteria of birth defects, and low statistical power. It is concluded that epidemiological studies, reported in the past decade, suggest that several common paternal occupations are associated with birth defects. Future studies could be focused on these specific, rather than general, occupational groups so that causative agents may be confirmed and thus enable appropriate preventive measures to be taken.