title: Residential proximity to major roads and obstetrical complications.
abstract: Exposure to air pollution is linked with an increased risk of preterm births. To provide further evidence on this relationship, we evaluated the association between proximity to major roads--as an index for air pollution exposure--and various obstetrical complications. Data were extracted from a database maintained by the perinatal hospital in Shizuoka, Japan. We restricted the analysis to mothers with singleton pregnancies of more than 22 weeks of gestation from 1997 to 2012 (n=19,077). Using the geocoded residential information, each mother was assigned proximity to major roads. We then estimated multivariate adjusted odds ratios and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the effects of proximity to major roads on various obstetrical complications (preeclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus, placenta abruption, placenta previa, preterm premature rupture of membrane (pPROM), preterm labor, and preterm births). We found positive associations of proximity to major roads with preeclampsia and pPROM. Living within 200 m increased the odds of preeclampsia by 1.3 times (95% CI, 1.0-1.8) and pPROM by 1.6 times (95% CI, 1.1-2.2). Furthermore, living within 200 m increased the odds of preterm births by 1.4 fold (95% CI, 1.2-1.7). Exposure to traffic-related air pollution increased the risk of preeclampsia and pPROM in this study. We propose a mechanism responsible for the association between air pollution and preterm births.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Ecology, Graduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan. Electronic address: yorichan@md.okayama-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yorifuji
authors.affiliation: Kaba Memorial Hospital, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan; Department of Obstetrics, Seirei Hamamatsu General Hospital, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Naruse
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Health Policy, Institute of Biomedical & Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Japan.
authors.forename: Saori
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kashima
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics, Seirei Hamamatsu General Hospital, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Murakoshi
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Doi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000397:Air Pollution / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D001336:Automobiles / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006798:Housing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D018811:Maternal Exposure / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000453:epidemiology*
keywords: Air pollution; Fetal membranes; Geographic Information System; Pre-eclampsia; Pregnancy; Premature rupture; Preterm birth; Reproductive health