title: Could a first-trimester blood phosphatidylethanol concentration ⩾4 nM be useful to identify women with moderate-to-heavy prenatal alcohol exposure who are at high risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes?
abstract: It is accepted that blood phosphatidylethanol (PEth) concentrations are reliable biomarkers of ethanol (alcohol) exposure. We therefore conducted a preliminary study to test the hypothesis that elevated blood PEth concentrations can help to identifying women with prenatal alcohol exposure who are at higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. The study included 35 first-trimester pregnant women who self-reported alcohol ingestion and had PEth blood concentration ⩾4 nM at recruitment. As a control group, 233 first-trimester pregnant women who self-reported as being either abstainers or light alcohol drinkers and had blood PEth concentrations <4 nM, were also included. All participants were followed up until completion of their pregnancies. Women with prenatal alcohol exposure and PEth concentrations ⩾4 nM had a risk ratio of spontaneous abortions of 3.21 (95%CI 0.93-11.06; P=0.074). Because of the potential implications in the prenatal care of women reporting risky alcohol exposure, the preliminary results from the present study indicate the need for testing the hypothesis in a more definitive approach.
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Food and Drug Safety Evaluation, Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, Seoul, Republic of Korea; Department of Systems Biology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jun-Young
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Cheil General Hospital and Women's Healthcare Center, Dankook University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Ho-Seok
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Kwak
authors.affiliation: The Korean Motherisk Program, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cheil General Hospital and Women's Healthcare Center, Dankook University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: hanjungyeol055@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jung-Yeol
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: The Korean Motherisk Program, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cheil General Hospital and Women's Healthcare Center, Dankook University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: June-Seek
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: The Korean Motherisk Program, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cheil General Hospital and Women's Healthcare Center, Dankook University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Hyun-Kyong
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.affiliation: Department of Systems Biology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Young-Jun
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: PharmaReasons - Pharmacological Research & Applied Solutions, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: E Yadira
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Velázquez-Armenta
authors.affiliation: PharmaReasons - Pharmacological Research & Applied Solutions, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Division of Clinical Pharmacology & Toxicology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Alejandro A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Nava-Ocampo
mesh_terms: D000022:Abortion, Spontaneous; D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D000431:Ethanol / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D020404:Glycerophospholipids / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D018811:Maternal Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D020404:Glycerophospholipids; C051521:phosphatidylethanol; D000431:Ethanol