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Prospective Birth Cohort Study (prospective + birth_cohort_study)
Selected AbstractsIntrauterine exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, fine particulate matter and early wheeze.PEDIATRIC ALLERGY AND IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 4p2 2010Prospective birth cohort study in 4-year olds Jedrychowski WA, Perera FP, Maugeri U, Mrozek-Budzyn D, Mroz E, Klimaszewska-Rembiasz M, Flak E, Edwards S, Spengler J, Jacek R, Sowa A. Intrauterine exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, fine particulate matter and early wheeze. Prospective birth cohort study in 4-year olds. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010: 21: e723,e732. © 2010 John Wiley & Sons A/S The main goal of the study was to determine the relationship between prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) measured by PAH-DNA adducts in umbilical cord blood and early wheeze. The level of PAH-DNA adducts in the cord blood is assumed to reflect the cumulative dose of PAHs absorbed by the foetus over the prenatal period. The effect of prenatal PAH exposure on respiratory health measured by the incidence rate ratio (IRR) for the number of wheezing days in the subsequent 4 yr follow-up was adjusted for potential confounding factors such as personal prenatal exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), gender of child, maternal characteristics (age, education and atopy), parity and mould/dampness in the home. The study sample includes 339 newborns of non-smoking mothers 18,35 yr of age and free from chronic diseases, who were recruited from ambulatory prenatal clinics in the first or second trimester of pregnancy. The number of wheezing days during the first 2 yr of life was positively associated with prenatal level of PAH-DNA adducts (IRR = 1.69, 95%CI = 1.52,1.88), prenatal particulate matter (PM2.5) level dichotomized by the median (IRR = 1.38; 95%CI: 1.25,1.51), maternal atopy (IRR = 1.43; 95%CI: 1.29,1.58), mouldy/damp house (IRR = 1.43; 95%CI: 1.27,1.61). The level of maternal education and maternal age at delivery was inversely associated with the IRRs for wheeze. The significant association between frequency of wheeze and the level of prenatal environmental hazards (PAHs and PM2.5) was not observed at ages 3 or 4 yrs. Although the frequency of wheezing at ages 3 or 4 was no longer associated with prenatal exposure to PAHs and PM2.5, its occurrence depended on the presence of wheezing in the first 2 yr of life, which nearly tripled the risk of wheezing in later life. In conclusion, the findings may suggest that driving force for early wheezing (<24 months of age) is different to those leading to later onset of wheeze. As we reported no synergistic effects between prenatal PAH (measured by PAH-DNA adducts) and PM2.5 exposures on early wheeze, this suggests the two exposures may exert independent effects via different biological mechanism on wheeze. [source] Is adiposity across life associated with subsequent hysterectomy risk?BJOG : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS & GYNAECOLOGY, Issue 2 2008Findings from the 1946 British birth cohort study Objective, To examine the associations between adiposity at time points from early life onwards and subsequent hysterectomy risk. Design, Prospective birth cohort study. Setting, England, Scotland and Wales. Population, Women from the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development study, with complete data on hysterectomy status (n= 1790). Methods, Survival analysis methods were used to examine the associations between body mass index at time points across life and subsequent hysterectomy rates. Main outcome measure, Self-reported hysterectomy with or without oophorectomy. Results, From 20 years onwards, those women who were classified as underweight had lower hysterectomy rates, and from 36 years onwards, those women who were overweight had higher hysterectomy rates than those who were normal weight. Women who were obese in adolescence and early adulthood had lower rates of hysterectomy than those who were normal weight, although numbers categorised as obese at these ages were small. Women who were obese in later adulthood had higher subsequent rates of hysterectomy. Greater increases in weight between ages 36 and 53 years were associated with higher rates of hysterectomy in later adulthood. These results were not explained by parity, age at menarche or socio-economic position. Conclusions, These results suggest that variation in hysterectomy rates may be partially explained by variation in adiposity, and so with the recent changes in levels of overweight and obesity in populations, there may be increasing demand for gynaecological treatments in the future. [source] Early pubertal maturation in the prediction of early adult substance use: a prospective studyADDICTION, Issue 1 2009Mohammad R. Hayatbakhsh ABSTRACT Aims To examine whether self-reporting a later stage of pubertal development in early adolescence predicts young adults' use of illicit drugs. Design Population-based prospective birth cohort study. Setting Follow-up of a cohort of mothers and their children, recruited between 1981 and 1983. Participants Cohort of 2710 young adults who completed a self-report questionnaire about their use of cannabis and amphetamines at the 21-year follow-up. Measurements Young adults' use of cannabis and amphetamines were measured at the 21-year follow-up. Stage of pubertal development was assessed at the 14-year follow-up. Potential confounding and mediating variables were assessed between birth and when the child was 14 years. Findings Of 2710 young adults, 49.9% (47.3 females and 52.7% males) reported that they had used cannabis and 21.0% (18.9% females and 23.3% males) reported that they had used amphetamines and cannabis by 21 years. In multivariate analyses, adolescents with a later stage of puberty were more likely to use cannabis or amphetamines in young adulthood. This association was not confounded by mother's education or child's gender and age. Part of the relationship was explained by the higher frequency of child externalizing behaviour at 14 years. Conclusions The findings warrant further attention to puberty as a sensitive period in an individual's development. With regard to prevention, there is a need to understand more about the pathways between pubertal development, child behaviour problems and substance use. [source] Drinking patterns in mid-adolescence and psychosocial outcomes in late adolescence and early adulthoodADDICTION, Issue 12 2004J. Elisabeth Wells ABSTRACT Aims To describe the pattern of drinking at age 16 and to relate this to outcomes at 16,21 years and 21,25 years across a number of psychosocial domains. Design A prospective birth cohort study with annual follow-up until age 16 then at 18, 21 and 25 years. Setting Christchurch, New Zealand. Participants Of 1265 subjects, 953 were interviewed at age 16. Measurements Multiple measures of family background were collected from birth to 16 years. Alcohol consumption was measured in terms of frequency, usual or last quantity drunk and most drunk per occasion. Problems were also recorded. Questions about psychiatric symptoms enabled Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) criteria to be applied. Detailed reports on educational outcomes, employment, sexual behaviours and offending were collected. Findings Four latent classes were required to describe drinking at age 16, but these appeared to lie along a single dimension which strongly predicted outcomes at ages 16,21 and 21,25 across all domains (alcohol-related, substance dependence, mental health, education, sexual relationships and offending). After controlling for background and correlates only a small number of outcomes were still related consistently to drinking at age 16 over both periods: most alcohol-related outcomes, the number of sexual partners and the extent of violent offending. Conclusions Drinking at age 16 is a clear indicator of future life-course over most domains in late adolescence and early adulthood. Many of these associations are due to other covariates. Outcomes specific to drinking at age 16 are alcohol outcomes, number of sexual partners and violence. [source] Mannose-binding lectin cord blood levels and respiratory symptoms during infancy: a prospective birth cohort studyPEDIATRIC ALLERGY AND IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 3 2009Luregn Jan Schlapbach Respiratory infections cause considerable morbidity during infancy. The impact of innate immunity mechanisms, such as mannose-binding lectin (MBL), on respiratory symptoms remains unclear. The aims of this study were to investigate whether cord blood MBL levels are associated with respiratory symptoms during infancy and to determine the relative contribution of MBL when compared with known risk factors. This is a prospective birth cohort study including 185 healthy term infants. MBL was measured in cord blood and categorized into tertiles. Frequency and severity of respiratory symptoms were assessed weekly until age one. Association with MBL levels was analysed using multivariable random effects Poisson regression. We observed a trend towards an increased incidence rate of severe respiratory symptoms in infants in the low MBL tertile when compared with infants in the middle MBL tertile [incidence rate ratio (IRR) = 1.59; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.95,2.66; p = 0.076]. Surprisingly, infants in the high MBL tertile suffered significantly more from severe and total respiratory symptoms than infants in the middle MBL tertile (IRR = 1.97; 95% CI: 1.20,3.25; p = 0.008). This association was pronounced in infants of parents with asthma (IRR = 3.64; 95% CI: 1.47,9.02; p = 0.005). The relative risk associated with high MBL was similar to the risk associated with well-known risk factors such as maternal smoking or childcare. In conclusion the association between low MBL levels and increased susceptibility to common respiratory infections during infancy was weaker than that previously reported. Instead, high cord blood MBL levels may represent a so far unrecognized risk factor for respiratory morbidity in infants of asthmatic parents. [source] Breastfeeding duration and exclusivity associated with infants' health and growth: data from a prospective cohort study in Bavaria, GermanyACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 6 2009Barbara Rebhan Abstract Aim: To investigate the relationship between breastfeeding and infant health and to describe growth in the first 9 months. Methods: Mothers delivering a baby in April 2005 were recruited throughout Bavaria, Germany, for a prospective birth cohort study. These mothers reported breastfeeding data, health and growth data of 1901 infants assessed by a physician in questionnaires on day 2,6, and in months 2, 4, 6 and 9. Subjects were healthy term infants with a birth weight ,2500 g. We compared 475 infants breastfed exclusively for ,6 months (group A), 870 infants breastfed fully/exclusively ,4 months, but not exclusively ,6 months (group B) and 619 infants not breastfed/breastfed <4 months (group C). Results: In multivariate analysis ,6 months of exclusive breastfeeding reduced significantly the risk for ,1 episode of gastrointestinal infection(s) during months 1,9 compared to no/<4 months breastfeeding (adjusted odds ratio [OR]: 0.60; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.44,0.82). The application of the World Health Organization (WHO) , child growth standards showed lower weight-for-length z-scores in first days of life in group C versus groups A and B, whereas in months 6/7 group C showed the highest scores. Conclusion: Differences in child growth depending on breastfeeding duration should be investigated further. Concerning health outcomes our findings support the recommendation for ,6 months of exclusive breastfeeding. [source] | ||||||||||