Biomaterial Database

Chronic respiratory symptoms in children following in utero and early life exposure to arsenic in drinking water in Bangladesh. 2013

Allan H Smith, and Mohammad Yunus, and Al Fazal Khan, and Ayse Ercumen, and Yan Yuan, and Meera Hira Smith, and Jane Liaw, and John Balmes, and Ondine von Ehrenstein, and Rubhana Raqib, and David Kalman, and Dewan S Alam, and Peter K Streatfield, and Craig Steinmaus

Arsenic Health Effects Research Program, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Dhaka, Bangladesh, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA, Department of Community Health Sciences, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA, Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA and Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, California Environmental Protection Agency, Oakland, CA, USA.

BACKGROUND Arsenic exposure via drinking water increases the risk of chronic respiratory disease in adults. However, information on pulmonary health effects in children after early life exposure is limited. METHODS This population-based cohort study set in rural Matlab, Bangladesh, assessed lung function and respiratory symptoms of 650 children aged 7-17 years. Children with in utero and early life arsenic exposure were compared with children exposed to less than 10 µg/l in utero and throughout childhood. Because most children drank the same water as their mother had drunk during pregnancy, we could not assess only in utero or only childhood exposure. RESULTS Children exposed in utero to more than 500 µg/l of arsenic were more than eight times more likely to report wheezing when not having a cold [odds ratio (OR) = 8.41, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.66-42.6, P < 0.01] and more than three times more likely to report shortness of breath when walking on level ground (OR = 3.86, 95% CI: 1.09-13.7, P = 0.02) and when walking fast or climbing (OR = 3.19, 95% CI: 1.22-8.32, P < 0.01]. However, there was little evidence of reduced lung function in either exposure category. CONCLUSIONS Children with high in utero and early life arsenic exposure had marked increases in several chronic respiratory symptoms, which could be due to in utero exposure or to early life exposure, or to both. Our findings suggest that arsenic in water has early pulmonary effects and that respiratory symptoms are a better marker of early life arsenic toxicity than changes in lung function measured by spirometry.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008297	Male		Males
D011247	Pregnancy	The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH.	Gestation,Pregnancies
D011297	Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects	The consequences of exposing the FETUS in utero to certain factors, such as NUTRITION PHYSIOLOGICAL PHENOMENA; PHYSIOLOGICAL STRESS; DRUGS; RADIATION; and other physical or chemical factors. These consequences are observed later in the offspring after BIRTH.	Delayed Effects, Prenatal Exposure,Late Effects, Prenatal Exposure
D012120	Respiration Disorders	Diseases of the respiratory system in general or unspecified or for a specific respiratory disease not available.	Disorder, Respiration,Disorders, Respiration,Respiration Disorder
D002648	Child	A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.	Children
D004781	Environmental Exposure	The exposure to potentially harmful chemical, physical, or biological agents in the environment or to environmental factors that may include ionizing radiation, pathogenic organisms, or toxic chemicals.	Exposure, Environmental,Environmental Exposures,Exposures, Environmental
D004812	Epidemiologic Methods	Research techniques that focus on study designs and data gathering methods in human and animal populations.	Epidemiologic Method,Epidemiological Methods,Methods, Epidemiologic,Epidemiological Method,Method, Epidemiologic,Method, Epidemiological,Methods, Epidemiological
D005260	Female		Females
D005541	Forced Expiratory Volume	Measure of the maximum amount of air that can be expelled in a given number of seconds during a FORCED VITAL CAPACITY determination . It is usually given as FEV followed by a subscript indicating the number of seconds over which the measurement is made, although it is sometimes given as a percentage of forced vital capacity.	Forced Vital Capacity, Timed,Timed Vital Capacity,Vital Capacity, Timed,FEVt,Capacities, Timed Vital,Capacity, Timed Vital,Expiratory Volume, Forced,Expiratory Volumes, Forced,Forced Expiratory Volumes,Timed Vital Capacities,Vital Capacities, Timed,Volume, Forced Expiratory,Volumes, Forced Expiratory
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man