Tobacco smoking during pregnancy and risk of adverse behaviour in offspring: A follow-up study.
OBJECTIVE
This study examines associations between prenatal exposure to tobacco smoking and adverse behaviour in the offspring.


METHODS
We included 1016 pregnant women from Greenland and Ukraine (526 from Greenland and 490 from Ukraine). Serum cotinine measurements were used to identify smoking pregnant women. When the children were from five to nine years of age, the parents assessed the child's behaviour using the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).


RESULTS
Overall, smoking in pregnancy was not associated with a higher probability of adverse behaviour assessed by the total SDQ score. However, in the crude analysis smoking was associated with a higher mean difference of SDQ-total score. In Greenland the SDQ-total mean difference (MD) was (MD (95% CI)=1.31 points (0.42; 2.19)) and in Ukraine (MD (95% CI)=0.18 points (-1.2; 0.91)), whereas the adjusted mean differences were statistically non-significant.


CONCLUSIONS
In utero exposure to tobacco smoking was not associated with a significant higher risk of adverse behaviour in the offspring, but elevated risk of adverse behaviour among children prenatally exposed to smoking cannot be excluded.
Danish Ramazzini Center, Department of Occupational Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Nørrebrogade 44, build.2c, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
Dorte Wiwe
DW
Dürr
Danish Ramazzini Center, Department of Occupational Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Nørrebrogade 44, build.2c, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
Birgit Bjerre
BB
Høyer
Danish Ramazzini Center, Department of Occupational Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Nørrebrogade 44, build.2c, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
Line Høgenhof
LH
Christensen
Primary Health Care Clinic, Postbox 570, DK-3900 Nuuk, Greenland.
Henning Sloth
HS
Pedersen
Departement of Social Medicine and Organization of Public Health, Kharkiv National Medical University, 61022 Kharkiv, Ukraine.
Andrii
A
Zinchuk
Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, S-221 85 Lund, Sweden.
Bo Ag
BA
Jönsson
Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, S-221 85 Lund, Sweden.
Christian H
CH
Lindh
Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, Bispebjerg Bakke 23, 2400 Copenhagen NV, Denmark.
Jens Peter
JP
Bonde
Danish Ramazzini Center, Department of Occupational Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Nørrebrogade 44, build.2c, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark; Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Olof Palmes Alle 43-45, 8200 Aarhus N, Denmark. Electronic address: gunnar.toft@clin.au.dk.
Gunnar
G
Toft
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior / Q000187:drug effects*; D002657:Child Development / Q000187:drug effects*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003367:Cotinine / Q000097:blood; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006116:Greenland; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014455:Ukraine; D055815:Young Adult
D015415:Biomarkers; D003367:Cotinine
Child behaviour; Psychopathological behaviour; Serum cotinine; Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; Tobacco smoking