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Maternal plasma perfluoroalkyl substances concentrations in early pregnancy and cardiovascular development in
Jian Wang1, Bowen Du1, Yujian Wu1
1Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Insights
Maternal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in early pregnancy is linked to thinner cardiac walls and reduced carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) in 4-year-old children. This study highlights potential adverse cardiovascular effects of PFAS on offspring development.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Cardiovascular Science
- Toxicology
Background:
- High maternal per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) concentrations are linked to adverse birth outcomes.
- Limited data exists on the impact of maternal PFAS on early childhood cardiovascular health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between maternal plasma PFAS concentrations during early pregnancy and cardiovascular development in offspring.
- To assess cardiovascular parameters in children at 4 years old in relation to prenatal PFAS exposure.
Main Methods:
- 957 children from the Shanghai Birth Cohort underwent blood pressure, echocardiography, and carotid ultrasound at age 4.
- Maternal plasma PFAS levels were measured in early pregnancy (mean gestational age 14.4 weeks).
- Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) and multiple linear regression were used to analyze PFAS mixture and individual chemical associations with cardiovascular parameters.
Main Results:
- Higher maternal PFAS concentrations were associated with significantly lower carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) and thinner cardiac wall dimensions.
- Specific short-chain PFAS were linked to decreased left ventricular wall thickness and enlarged chamber volume.
- Long-chain PFAS were associated with reduced cIMT.
Conclusions:
- Maternal plasma PFAS concentrations in early pregnancy are adversely associated with offspring cardiovascular development.
- Findings indicate potential risks of thinner cardiac walls and reduced cIMT in children exposed to PFAS prenatally.
Background:
High maternal plasma perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) concentrations has been associated with adverse birth outcomes, but data on early childhood cardiovascular health is limited. This study aimed to assess the potential association between maternal plasma PFAS concentrations during early pregnancy and cardiovascular development in offspring.
Material And Methods:
Cardiovascular development was assessed through blood pressure measurement, echocardiography and carotid ultrasound examinations among 957 children from the Shanghai Birth Cohort aged at 4 years old. Maternal plasma concentrations of PFAS were measured at mean gestational age of 14.4 (SD:1.8) weeks. The joint associations between PFAS mixture concentrations and cardiovascular parameters were analyzed using a Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR). The potential association of individual PFAS chemicals concentrations was explored using multiple linear regression.
Results:
In BKMR analyses, carotid intima media thickness (cIMT), interventricular septum thickness in diastole and systole, posterior wall thicknesses in diastole and systole, and relative wall thickness were significantly lower when all log10-transformed PFAS were fixed at 75th percentile in comparison to at their 50th percentile[Estimated overall Risk:-0.31 (95%CI: -0.42, -0.20), -0.09 (95%CI: -0.11, -0.07), -0.21 (95%CI: -0.26, -0.16), -0.09 (95%CI: -0.11, -0.07), -0.07 (95%CI: -0.10, -0.04) and -0.005 (95%CI: -0.006, -0.004)].Furthermore, maternal plasma concentrations of individual short-chain PFAS was associated with a decrease in left ventricular wall thickness, intraventricular septum thickness and enlarged chamber volume, and long-chain with a decrease in cIMT.
Conclusions:
Our findings suggest that maternal plasma PFAS concentrations during early pregnancy was adversely associated with cardiovascular development in offspring, including thinner cardiac wall thickness and cIMT.
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