Biomedical subjects

Michael O'Callaghan

Publications and source records attributed to Michael O'Callaghan.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Epidemiologic evidence for the fetal overnutrition hypothesis: findings from the mater-university study of pregnancy and its outcomes.

The fetal overnutrition hypothesis proposes that greater maternal adiposity results in increased obesity throughout life in the offspring. The authors examined the associations between parental prepregnancy body mass index (BMI; weight (kg)/height (m)(2)), based on height and weight reported by the mother at her first antenatal clinic visit, and offspring BMI (height and weight measured at age 14 years) in 3,340 parent-offspring trios from a birth cohort based in Brisbane, Australia (mothers were recruited in 1981-1984). The maternal-offspring BMI association was stronger than the paternal-offspring BMI association. In the fully adjusted model, the increase in standardized offspring BMI at age 14 for a one-standard-deviation (SD) increase in maternal BMI was 0.362 SD (95% confidence interval: 0.323, 0.402), and the corresponding result for a one-SD increase in paternal BMI was 0.239 SD (95% confidence interval: 0.197, 0.282). There was statistical support for a difference in the magnitude of the association between maternal-offspring BMI and paternal-offspring BMI in all confounder-adjusted models tested (all p's < 0.0001). In sensitivity analyses taking account of different plausible levels of nonpaternity (up to 15%), the greater maternal effect remained. These findings provide some support for the fetal overnutrition hypothesis.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Is there a fetal origin of depression? Evidence from the Mater University Study of Pregnancy and its outcomes.

It is unclear whether there is a fetal origin of adult depression. In particular, previous studies have been unable to adjust for the potential effect of maternal depression during pregnancy on any association. The association of birth weight with adult symptoms of depression was examined in an Australian prospective birth cohort, the Mater University Study of Pregnancy and its outcomes. Depressive symptoms were assessed with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale among 3,719 participants at the 21-year follow-up in 2002-2005. In multivariable analyses, there were a weak inverse association between birth weight and symptoms of depression in the whole cohort and some evidence of sex differences in this association. Among females, there was a graded inverse association: In the fully adjusted model, the odds ratio for a high level of depressive symptoms for a 1-standard deviation increase in birth weight (gestational age-standardized z score) was 0.82 (95% confidence interval: 0.73, 0.92). Among males, there was no association (with sex in all models: p(interaction) < 0.004). Study results provide some support for a fetal origin of adult depression and suggest that the association is not explained by maternal mental health characteristics during pregnancy. Further research is needed to better understand the mechanisms underlying the association.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Characterization of pre- and post-treatment pathology after enzyme replacement therapy for Pompe disease.

In Pompe disease, a genetic deficiency of lysosomal acid alpha-glucosidase, glycogen accumulates abnormally in the lysosomes of skeletal, cardiac and smooth muscle, and contributes to clinically progressive and debilitating muscle weakness. The present study involved 8 infantile-onset Pompe patients, treated weekly with 10 mg/kg of recombinant human acid alpha-glucosidase (rhGAA). Muscle biopsies were obtained at baseline, 12 and 52 weeks post-treatment to establish an indicator of efficacy. Several histologic strategies were employed to characterize changes in pre- and post-treatment samples, including high-resolution light microscopy and digital histomorphometry, electron microscopy, capillary density and fiber type analysis, and confocal microscopy for satellite cell activation analysis. Histomorphometric analysis was performed on muscle samples to assess glycogen depletion in response to enzyme replacement therapy (ERT). The extent of glycogen clearance varied widely among these patient samples, and correlated well with clinical outcome. Low glycogen levels, mild ultrastructural damage, a high proportion of type I fibers, and young age at baseline were all features associated with good histologic response. There was no correlation between capillary density and glycogen clearance, and activated satellite cell levels were shown to be higher in post-treatment biopsies with poor histologic responses. This histopathologic study of infantile Pompe disease provides detailed insight into the cellular progression of the disease and its response to therapy while highlighting a number of methodologies which may be employed to assess regression or progression of the associated pathology. As enzyme replacement therapy becomes more prevalent for the treatment of lysosomal storage diseases, such evaluation of post-treatment pathology will likely become a more common occurrence in the daily practice of pathologists.

Capillaries↗

PubMed2006

Prenatal alcohol exposure and attention, learning and intellectual ability at 14 years: a prospective longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: A range of adverse birth outcomes is associated with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure. AIM: To examine the effects of moderate levels of alcohol consumption during pregnancy on children's intellectual ability, learning and attention at 14 years of age. STUDY DESIGN AND SUBJECTS: The Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy involves a prospective birth cohort of 7223 singletons whose mothers were enrolled at the first antenatal visit. At 14 years, 5139 mothers and adolescents completed attentional and learning questionnaires, and 3731 adolescents completed psychometric assessments. OUTCOME MEASURES: For adolescents, the Wide Range Achievement Test--Revised (WRAT-R) and Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices Test (Raven's) were administered. Mothers completed the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) and adolescents completed the Youth Self Report (YSR). Learning was assessed by a series of questions in the mother and adolescent questionnaires. Maternal measures included the quantity and frequency of alcohol consumption, and the extent of binge drinking. RESULTS: For consumption of <1 glass/day in early or late pregnancy, there was no association with any attention, learning or cognitive outcomes. The strongest estimates of effect were found among those consuming > or =1 glasses/day. Exposure in late pregnancy was associated with increased prevalence of overall learning difficulty in the unadjusted, although not the adjusted analysis. Binge drinking was associated with a higher prevalence of Raven's score <85 (1 standard deviation). CONCLUSIONS: Although a number of study limitations need to be considered, the results suggest that consumption at the level of <1 drink/day does not lead to adverse outcomes in relation to attention, learning and cognitive abilities, as measured in the current research.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

In utero alcohol exposure and prediction of alcohol disorders in early adulthood: a birth cohort study.

CONTEXT: Little is known about the contribution of fetal alcohol exposure to the development of alcohol disorders in early adulthood. OBJECTIVE: To examine the independent effect of maternal alcohol use during early vs late periods in pregnancy on the time of onset of alcohol disorders in offspring. DESIGN: Follow-up study of the Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy and Its Outcomes (MUSP), a population-based birth cohort study commenced in Brisbane, Australia, in 1981 and designed to examine the association of maternal alcohol exposure with the onset of alcohol disorders. Mothers and children were followed up at birth, 6 months, and 5, 14, and 21 years after the initial interview. Maternal alcohol use was assessed before pregnancy, in early and late pregnancy, and at the 5- and 14-year follow-up visits. Alcohol disorders in early adulthood were assessed at age 21 years using the lifetime version of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview-computerized version. SETTING: Population-based birth cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: A subsample of 2138 participants for whom complete data were available at the 21-year follow-up. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Onset of alcohol disorder from adolescence to 21 years of age. RESULTS: In utero alcohol exposure of 3 or more glasses was associated with alcohol disorders. The fully adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) of developing early-onset alcohol disorders at age 21 years were 2.95 (1.62-5.36) for those exposed to maternal drinking in early pregnancy and 1.35 (0.69-2.63) for those exposed in late pregnancy. There was also a strong association between alcohol exposure in early pregnancy and late-onset alcohol disorders (odds ratio, 3.29 [95% confidence interval, 1.74-6.24]). CONCLUSIONS: Our results provide support for a biological origin of adult alcohol disorders and suggest that the association is not explained solely by maternal drinking or smoking during childhood and adolescence or other intervening factors. Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying the association.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

In utero and postnatal maternal smoking and asthma in adolescence.

BACKGROUND: Asthma in early childhood has been associated with maternal smoking during pregnancy and parental smoking soon after birth. However, less is known about these exposures and the development of asthma symptoms in adolescence. METHODS: Data were taken from the Mater University Study of Pregnancy, a large birth cohort study of mothers and children enrolled in Brisbane, Australia, beginning in 1981. Smoking was assessed at 2 stages during pregnancy and at the 6-month and 5-year follow-up visits. Asthma was assessed from maternal reports that were provided when the child was age 14 years. We conducted multivariable multinomial logistic regression analyses to assess the effect of maternal smoking on asthma symptoms. RESULTS: There was a strong sex interaction such that girls whose mothers had smoked heavily (20 or more cigarettes per day) in pregnancy and at the 6-month follow up had increased odds of experiencing asthma symptoms at age 14 (odds ratio = 1.96; 95% confidence interval = 1.25-3.08). The contribution of heavy smoking during pregnancy appeared to be stronger than heavy smoking after the birth. No similar associations were seen for boys. CONCLUSION: Female adolescents whose mothers smoked heavily during the fetal period and the early months of life have increased risk of asthma symptoms in adolescence. In utero exposure to heavy smoking was found to have a stronger effect than postnatal environmental tobacco exposure.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Prediction of adolescent smoking from family and social risk factors at 5 years, and maternal smoking in pregnancy and at 5 and 14 years.

AIMS: This study examines associations between maternal smoking and family, social or child risk factors when the child is aged 5 and adolescent smoking. The influence of mothers who smoke in pregnancy or continue to smoke at 14 years was also examined. DESIGN: The Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy is a prospective cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: Participants included 8556 women enrolled between 1981 and 1984 at their first antenatal visit. Completed questionnaires were obtained for 7223 offspring, comprising the study birth cohort. Of the 7223 eligible children a total of 4541 had information on both maternal smoking when the child was aged 5 years and adolescent smoking at 14 years. MEASUREMENTS: Measures included maternal smoking during pregnancy and when the child was aged 5 and 14 years, child smoking at 14 years, maternal alcohol use, child behaviour problems and social and demographic variables. FINDINGS: Adolescent smoking was predicted by a risk score at 5 years involving maternal smoking and alcohol use, non-married status, having a partner who had ever been arrested, having four or more children in the household, and child aggression at 5 years. Continued maternal smoking from 5 to 14 years was associated strongly with adolescent smoking. There was also evidence that smoking in late pregnancy may exert an independent effect on adolescent smoking. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest the possibility of a direct effect of prenatal smoking on adolescent smoking and highlight a set of environmental risk factors in the development of adolescent smoking. These risk factors may be used as early warning signs that intervention may be needed, and given the similarities with risk factors for other adverse childhood outcomes, the benefits of early intervention may extend beyond smoking to other problem behaviours. The possibility of being able to predict other disorders, because of these associations, also warrants further investigation.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Breastfeeding and obesity at 14 years: a cohort study.

AIM: To determine the influence of breastfeeding on overweight and obesity in early adolescence. METHODS: Data about breastfeeding duration, BMI of children at 14 years, and confounding variables, were collected from an ongoing longitudinal study of a birth cohort of 7776 children in Brisbane. Prevalence of overweight and obesity at 14 years was assessed according to duration of breastfeeding, with logistic regression being used to adjust for the influence of confounders. RESULTS: Data were available for 3698 children, and those not included were significantly different in age, educational level, income, race, birthweight, and small-for-gestational-age status. Breastfeeding for longer than six months was protective of obesity (OR 0.6, 95% CI 0.4, 0.96) though not of overweight. When confounding variables were considered the effect size diminished and lost statistical significance OR 0.8 (95% CI 0.5, 1.3). Breastfeeding for less than 6 months had no effect on either obesity or overweight though a trend was found for increased prevalence of overweight at 14 years with shorter periods of breastfeeding. CONCLUSION: This investigation contributes to the gathering body of evidence that breastfeeding for longer than 6 months has a modest protective effect against obesity in adolescence.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Does maternal smoking during pregnancy predict the smoking patterns of young adult offspring? A birth cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between maternal smoking during pregnancy and the development of smoking behaviour patterns among young adult offspring. METHOD: Data were from the Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy (MUSP), a birth cohort of 7223 mothers and children enrolled in Brisbane, Australia, in 1981. The development of smoking behaviours (early or late onset, or combination of onset and prevalence patterns) among offspring at age 21 years with different patterns of maternal smoking (never smoked, smoked before or after pregnancy but not during pregnancy, or smoked during pregnancy) were compared. Maternal smoking information was derived from the prospectively collected data from the beginning of pregnancy until the child was 14 years of age. Analyses were restricted to the 3058 mothers and children whose smoking status was reported. RESULTS: The proportion of young adults who smoked regularly, either with early onset or late onset, was greater among those whose mothers had smoked during pregnancy compared with those whose mothers had never smoked. The smoking patterns among those adolescent offspring whose mothers stopped smoking during pregnancy, but who then smoked at other times during the child's life, were similar to those whose mothers had never smoked. This association was robust to adjustment for a variety of potential covariates. CONCLUSIONS: The findings provide some evidence for a direct effect of maternal smoking in utero on the development of smoking behaviour patterns of offspring and provide yet another incentive to persuade pregnant women not to smoke.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

The association between early minor motor difficulties in extreme low birth weight infants and school age attentional difficulties.

INTRODUCTION: Extremely premature infants of normal intellectual ability have an increased prevalence of motor and attentional difficulties. Knowledge of the relationship between early motor difficulties and measures of attention at school age would enhance understanding of these developmental pathways, their interrelationship and opportunities for intervention. OBJECTIVE: This study examines whether an association exists between early findings of minor motor difficulties and school age clinical and psychometric measures of attention. METHODOLOGY: 45/60 eligible ELBW(1000 g) or preterm (< 27/40 gestation) infants born at the Mater Mother's Hospital were assessed at 12 and 24 months for minor motor deficits (using NSMDA) and at 7-9 years for attention, using clinical (Conners and Du Paul Rating Scales) and psychometric (assessing attention span, selective and divided attention) measures. RESULTS: NSMDA at 12 months was only associated with the psychometric measures of verbal attention span. It was not associated with later clinical measures of attention. NSMDA at 24 months was strongly associated with specific clinical measures of attention at school age, independent of biological and social factors. It was not associated with psychometric measures of attention. CONCLUSION: The major finding of this study is that motor difficulties in ELBW infants at 2 years are associated with later clinical measures of attention. Possible mechanisms underlying this relationship are considered.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Early predictors of adult drinking: a birth cohort study.

Few studies have explored early predictors of problem drinking in youth, and fewer still have simultaneously considered the role of biologic, familial, and intrapersonal factors. The present study explored early life course and later life course predictors of alcohol abuse and dependence in young adulthood. Data were taken from a cohort of 2,551 mothers and their children recruited as part of the longitudinal Mater University Study of Pregnancy and its outcomes (MUSP) carried out in Brisbane, Australia, from 1981 to 1984. Data were collected prenatally and then postnatally at 6 months and at 5, 14, and 21 years. A range of biologic, familial, and intrapersonal factors was considered. A series of logistic regression models with inverse probability weighting was used to explore pathways to problem drinking from adolescence to early adulthood. For males and females, no association was found between either birth factors or childhood factors and a lifetime diagnosis of alcohol disorders at age 21 years. Externalizing symptoms and maternal factors at age 14 years were significantly associated with alcohol problems. For youth aged 14 years, maternal moderate alcohol consumption accounted for the highest percentage of attributable risk among those exposed. Results show that exposure to maternal drinking in adolescence is a strong risk factor for the development of alcohol problems in early adulthood.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Predictors of depression in very young children--a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: There have been only a few previous population-based studies of symptoms of depression in young children. There are no previous population-based studies which examine the factors which might be casually associated with depression in very young children. METHODS: Data are from a cohort study of pregnant women who gave birth to a live singleton baby in a large public hospital in Brisbane, Australia. The Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy (MUSP) involves a 5-year follow-up, with mothers completing a short form of Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) describing the mental health of their child. Five groups of variables (socio-demographic, pre- and perinatal, maternal mental health, maternal lifestyle and maternal attitude to the child) were used to predict CBCL depression scores at the 5-year follow-up. RESULTS: There are many factors associated with maternal reports of symptoms of depression in 5-year-old children. These include marital partner changes, mother's health problems in pregnancy, child health over the first six months of life, maternal anxiety and marital satisfaction early in the child's development and the mother's attitude towards caregiving. A multiple risk factor model indicates higher rates of depression for children experiencing multiple exposures to risk. While a number of exposures are associated with increased risk, many of those children perceived to be depressed appear to lack any measured exposures. CONCLUSION: Many children as young as 5 years of age are observed to experience multiple symptoms of depression. The majority of children exposed to high levels of risk do not appear to become depressed; they appear to be resilient. The majority of children who experience multiple symptoms of depression appear to lack any known exposures to risk.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed2005

Is there really a 'J-shaped' curve in the association between alcohol consumption and symptoms of depression and anxiety? Findings from the Mater-University Study of Pregnancy and its outcomes.

AIMS: To determine the nature of the association between alcohol consumption and symptoms of anxiety and depression in women. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study of women (n = 4527) who received antenatal care at a major public hospital (Mater Misericordiae Hospital) in South Brisbane between 1981 and 1984 and who have follow-up data on alcohol use, depressive and anxiety symptoms over a 14-year period. FINDINGS: At the 5-year follow-up there was a 'J-shaped' association between alcohol consumption and both symptoms of depression and of anxiety. However, at the baseline assessment and the 14-year follow-up alcohol consumption was linearly and positively associated with depressive symptoms with increasing prevalence of symptoms with greater consumption. At the 5-year follow-up the prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms among those who were abstainers at both baseline and 5-year follow-up was similar to that among those who had been previous drinkers and then become abstainers (P = 0.67). Similarly, the prevalence of these symptoms was the same at the 14-year follow-up comparing those who had been abstainers at baseline, 5-year and 14-year follow-up to those who had previously consumed alcohol but were then abstainers. CONCLUSIONS: The nature of the association between alcohol consumption and symptoms of depression and anxiety may vary across their life course in women. Previous drinkers who become abstainers do not appear to be at any higher risk of symptoms of depression or anxiety compared to those who always abstained, suggesting that increased symptoms in abstainers at age 30 is not due to 'sick quitters'. The association of high alcohol consumption with symptoms of depression and anxiety may be confounded by low income and smoking.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Movement and motor development in ELBW infants at 1 year is related to cognitive and motor abilities at 4 years.

A relationship between motor ability and cognitive performance has been previously reported. This study aimed to investigate the association between movement and cognitive performance at 1 and 4 years corrected age of children born less than 1000 g, and whether developmental testing of movement at 1 year is predictive of cognitive performance at 4 years. Motor development was assessed at both ages using the neurosensory motor developmental assessment (NSMDA) and motor development was classified as normal, or minimal, mild, moderate-severe dysfunction. Cognitive performance was assessed on the Griffith Mental Developmental Scale at 1 year and McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities at 4 years. Subjects included 198 children of birthweight less than 1000 g. Of these 132 children returned for follow-up at the corrected ages of both 1 and 4 years. The 66 children not included had a slight increase in gestational age, while the mothers were younger and had a lower level of education. A significant association was found between NSMDA group classification at 1 year and cognitive performance at both 1 and 4 years (p<0.001; p<0.0001) and between the subscales of each test (1 year, p<0.0001; 4 years, p<0.001). Group classification of motor development at 1 year was predictive of cognitive performance at 4 years (p<0.0001) and this was independent of biological and social factors and presence of cerebral palsy (CP). The findings support a close link between motor and cognitive development in children born <1000 g and emphasise the advantage of detailed assessment of movement at 1 year.

Child Development↗

PubMed2004

The generational transmission of socioeconomic inequalities in child cognitive development and emotional health.

Socioeconomic inequalities in the health of adults have been largely attributed to lifestyle inequalities. The cognitive development (CD) and emotional health (EH) of the child provides a basis for many of the health-related behaviours which are observed in adulthood. There has been relatively little attention paid to the way CD and EH are transmitted in the foetal and childhood periods, even though these provide a foundation for subsequent socioeconomic inequalities in adult health. The Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy (MUSP) is a large, prospective, pre-birth cohort study which enrolled 8556 pregnant women at their first clinic visit over the period 1981-1983. These mothers (and their children) have been followed up at intervals until 14 years after the birth. The socioeconomic status of the child was measured using maternal age, family income, and marital status and the grandfathers' occupational status. Measures of child CD and child EH were obtained at 5 and 14 years of age. Child smoking at 14 years of age was also determined. Family income was related to all measures of child CD and EH and smoking, independently of all other indicators of the socioeconomic status of the child. In addition, the grandfathers' occupational status was independently related to child CD (at 5 and 14 years of age). Children from socioeconomically disadvantaged families (previous generations' socioeconomic status as well as current socioeconomic status) begin their lives with a poorer platform of health and a reduced capacity to benefit from the economic and social advances experienced by the rest of society.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Monitoring the 3-year efficacy of enzyme replacement therapy in fabry disease by repeated skin biopsies.

The earliest clinical signs of Fabry disease often manifest as dermatologic disturbances such as angiokeratomata, hypohidrosis, acroparesthesias, and impaired thermal and vibration detection. These disturbances are caused by cellular globotriaosylceramide accumulation in the skin due to deficient lysosomal alpha-galactosidase A activity. In this histologic study, we analyzed pre- and post-treatment dermatologic biopsies from 58 Fabry patients enrolled in a 5 mo, Phase 3 double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial followed by a 30 mo open label extension study of recombinant human alpha-galactosidase A (r-halphaGalA), administered i.v. at 1 mg per kg every 2 wk. Baseline evaluations revealed globotriaosylceramide in multiple dermal cell types (vascular endothelial cells, vascular smooth muscle cells, perineurium). Five months of r-halphaGalA treatment in the Phase 3 trial resulted in complete clearance of globotriaosylceramide from the superficial capillary endothelium in all treatment patients and in only 1 (3%) placebo patient (p<0.001). The placebo group achieved similar results after 6 mo of r-halphaGalA in the open label trial. The capillary endothelium remained free of globotriaosylceramide for up to 30 mo into the extension study among 39 of 40 (98%) patients who underwent biopsies. Globotriaosylceramide clearance from deep vascular endothelial cells was similarly robust. Vascular smooth muscle cells and perineurium demonstrated moderate clearance. These findings suggest that long-term treatment with r-halphaGalA may halt the progression of pathology and prevent the dermatologic disturbances in Fabry patients, and that periodic dermal biopsies can serve as a reliable monitor of sustained efficacy.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

A model of spatially evolving herpesvirus epidemics causing mass mortality in Australian pilchard Sardinops sagax.

In 1995 mass mortality of pilchards Sardinops sagax occurred along >5000 km of Australian coast; similar events occurred in 1998/99. This mortality was closely associated with a herpesvirus. The pilchard is an important food source for larger animals and supports commercial fisheries. Both epidemics originated in South Australian waters and spread as waves with velocities of 10 to 40 km d(-1). Velocity was constant for a single wave, but varied between the epidemics and between the east- and west-bound waves in each epidemic. The pattern of mortality evolved from recurrent episodes to a single peak with distance from the origin. A 1-dimensional model of these epidemics has been developed. The host population is divided into susceptible, infected and latent, infected and infectious, and removed (recovered and dead) phases; the latent and infectious periods are of fixed duration. This model produces the mortality patterns observed locally and during the spread and evolution of the epidemic. It is consistent with evidence from pathology. The wave velocity is sensitive to diffusion coefficients, viral transmission rates and latent period. These parameters are constrained using the local and large-scale patterns of epidemic spread. The relative roles of these parameters in explaining differences between epidemics and between east- and west-bound waves within epidemics are discussed. The model predicts very high levels of infection, indicating that many surviving pilchards recovered following infection. Control appears impracticable once epidemics are initiated, but impact can be minimised by protecting juvenile stocks.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy and physical outcomes up to 5 years of age: a longitudinal study.

AIM: To examine whether alcohol exposure in pregnancy affects weight and head circumference (HC) at birth and 5 years, and whether these effects are independent of cigarette exposure in pregnancy and social disadvantage. STUDY DESIGN: The Mater-University Study of Pregnancy (MUSP) involves a prospective cohort of 8556 mothers who were enrolled at first antenatal visit. The quantity and frequency of alcohol consumption in early and late pregnancy and a measure of binge drinking in early pregnancy were recorded. Weight and HC were measured on children seen at birth and at 5 years. Level of cigarette use in early pregnancy and maternal age and level of education and family income were also measured. RESULTS: Light and moderate alcohol consumption in early or later pregnancy had no independent effects on weight or HC at birth or 5 years. Binge drinking in early pregnancy was not associated with restricted HC, and there was no effect modification by concurrent cigarette use in early pregnancy. An apparent effect of alcohol in late pregnancy on birth weight was due to confounding by cigarette use, with social risk being an independent predictor. CONCLUSION: Alcohol ingestion up to moderate levels in pregnancy was not associated with deficits in either weight or HC at birth or at 5 years.

Adolescent↗