BACKGROUND: The scientific literature poses a perplexing dilemma for pregnant women with respect to the consumption of fish from natural bodies of water. On one hand, fish is a good source of protein, low in fat and a rich source of other nutrients all of which have presumably beneficial effects on developing embryos and fetuses. On the other hand, consumption of fish contaminated with environmental toxicants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) has been associated with decrements in gestation and birth size. METHODS: 2,716 infants born between 1986-1991 to participants of the New York State Angler Cohort Study were studied with respect to duration of maternal consumption of contaminated fish from Lake Ontario and its tributaries and gestation and birth size. Hospital delivery records (maternal and newborn) were obtained for 92% of infants for the ascertainment of gestation (weeks), birth size (weight, length, chest, and head circumference) and other known determinants of fetal growth (i.e., maternal parity, history of placental infarction, uterine bleeding, pregnancy loss or cigarette smoking and infant's race, sex and presence of birth defect). Duration of maternal fish consumption prior to the index infant's birth was categorized as: none; 1-2, 3-7, 8+ years, while birth weight (in grams), birth length (in centimeters), and head and chest circumference (in centimeters) were left as continuous variables in multiple linear regression models. Birth size percentiles, ponderal indices and head to chest circumference ratios were computed to further assess proportionality and birth size in relation to gestational age. RESULTS: Analysis of variance failed to identify significant mean differences in gestation or any measure of birth size in relation to duration of maternal lifetime fish consumption. Multiple linear regressions identified gestational age, male sex, number of daily cigarettes, parity and placental infarction, as significant determinants of birth size. CONCLUSIONS: The results support the absence of an adverse relation between Lake Ontario fish consumption and reduced birth size as measured by weight, length and head circumference. Biological determinants and maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy remain important determinants of birth size.

Birth Weight↗

PubMed2003

Exploring associations between serum levels of select organochlorines and thyroxine in a sample of New York state sportsmen: the New York State Angler Cohort Study.

This preliminary study investigated associations between environmental organochlorine compounds and thyroid function in a sample of 66 sportsmen selected from among participants in the New York State Angler Cohort Study. A cross-sectional design was employed with the primary goal of the analysis being the generation of specific testable hypotheses. Blood samples were analyzed for compounds based on a priori identified literature-cited evidence of thyroid disruption. These included hexachlorobenzene and polychlorinated biphenyl congeners 19, 28, 47, 118, 153, 169, 180, 183, and 187. Time of sample collection, serum triglycerides, cholesterol, high- and low-density lipoproteins, age, body mass index, and cigarette smoking were considered for each participant. Potential associations between organochlorine compounds and serum total thyroxine, controlling for potential confounders, were examined using multivariable linear regression models. The models reported consisted of all variates being entered ("full" model, R2=0.380, P=0.136) and stepwise selection of variates ("reduced" models, alpha=0.15) using the criterion of maximum partial correlation at each step. Several procedures were considered to address contaminant data below the limit of detection in the reduced models with no change in selected predictors. Hexachlorobenzene (beta=-0.113) and age (beta=0.007) were selected as predictors of serum T4 in the reduced models (R2=0.083, P=0.065). Power analysis suggested that by doubling the sample size the existing results would be statistically significant with a type I error of 0.05 and a power of 0.80. These findings are important in the design of a new specific study of thyroid function and environmental contaminants.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Using commercial telephone directories to obtain a population-based sample for mail survey of women of reproductive age.

In the United States, sampling women of reproductive age from the general population for research purposes is a challenge. Even more difficult is conducting a population-based study of couples attempting pregnancy to assess fecundity and fertility or related impairments. To address the problem of obtaining representative samples from the population in order to study such health-related issues, a commercially and readily available CD-ROM telephone directory was used and tested as a sampling framework for studies aimed at enrolling gravid women aged 18-44 years. A self-administered questionnaire (SAQ) was mailed to a stratified random sample of 10 005 (3%) households in Erie County, NY, USA. Overall, 17% of the questionnaires were undeliverable despite updating all addresses with residential software before mailing. Thirteen per cent (n = 1089) of the households returned completed questionnaires, of which 35% (n = 377) were completed by women aged 18-44 years. Using 1990 census information for zip code, respondents were more likely to be white and to have higher median household incomes than non-respondents. Of the 377 women who completed the questionnaire, 79% had been pregnant at least once, 5% reported being unable to become pregnant, and 16% reporting never trying to become pregnant. Despite the overall low response to the SAQ, the sampling framework captured a diverse group of women of reproductive age who reported various fecundity and fertility outcomes. The use of low-cost commercially available software linked to census data for selecting samples of women or couples for reproductive and perinatal research may be possible; however, oversampling of households, use of incentives and follow-up of non-respondents is needed to ensure adequate sample sizes.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Fire ants in Australia: a new medical and ecological hazard.

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Anaphylaxis↗

PubMed2002

Identification of sport fish consumption patterns in families of recreational anglers through factor analysis.

This paper reports on the identification of sport fish consumption patterns in angler families through the factor analysis technique. New York State recreational anglers and their spouses or partners were surveyed in 1991 about their consumption of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie sport fish. Respondents were surveyed again in 1997 to report the number of sport fish consumed by their children aged 5-10 years. Parental report revealed that 60% of children had consumed at least one sport fish meal over their lifetime. Anglers', partners', and children's variables were entered into three separate factor analysis models to assess consumption patterns. Factors for anglers and partners accounted for 65 and 59% of variance in consumption scores, respectively. Factors dealing with trout and salmon consumption accounted for the most variance. Children's factors accounted for 82% of variance in consumption scores, showing separation in relation to type of fish, body of water, and age at consumption. Children's factors were then used as dependent measures of separate multiple regression runs in which parental factors were entered stepwise as predictors. Significant associations between parental and children's factors were noted, suggesting that sport fish consumption patterns in parents are predictive of similar consumption patterns in children. Results suggest that sport fish consumption advisories do not fully prevent consumption of contaminated sport fish during childhood. Therefore, risk communicators may need to modify the current strategy of informing anglers and their families about sport fish consumption recommendations.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Organization, function, and accomplishments of the Gynecologic Oncology Group.

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Clinical Trials as Topic↗