Purpose: High levels of air pollution exposure are associated with adverse reproductive health outcomes, including low birthweight and infant mortality. We examined whether infants at high sociodemographic risk of adverse birth outcomes were more likely to be born in areas with higher levels of air pollution.
Methods: Exposure to air pollution was represented by a composite index consisting of scaled ambient monitoring data for five pollutants defined as criteria pollutants by US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - particulate matter, ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide. Monitoring data were obtained from EPA's Aerometric Information Retrieval System.
United States Natality files were used to describe the distribution of births relative to air pollution exposure. High and low risk births were defined using a composite sociodemographic measure derived from maternal age, education, parity, and marital status.
Results: Overall, 16.3% of low risk and 24.7% of high risk births occurred in the top quintile of air pollution exposure. However, 21% of low risk and 18.6% of high risk births occurred in the bottom quintile of exposure. These findings were more striking among white births; 15.2% of low risk compared to 30.9% of high risk births occurred in the highest quintile of air pollution exposure. However, among black births, similar numbers of high and low risk births occurred in the highest quintile of air pollution exposure (14.9% and 16.6%, respectively).
Conclusion: Infants vulnerable to adverse birth outcomes are more likely to live in areas with higher air pollution exposure.
Learning Objectives: At the end of this session, the participant will be able to assess the relationship between sociodemographic risk and air pollution exposure among births in the United States
Keywords: Infant Health, Air Pollutants
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.