Prenatal exposure to extremely low frequency magnetic field and its impact on fetal growth

2019 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 1915

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2019

Study typecohort

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Prenatal exposure to extremely low frequency magnetic field and its impact on fetal growth Ren Y, Chen J, Miao M, Li DK, Liang H, Wang Z, Yang F, Sun X, Yuan W. Prenatal exposure to extremely low frequency magnetic field and its impact on fetal growth. Environ Health. 2019 Jan 11;18(1):6. doi: 10.1186/s12940-019-0447-9. Abstract OBJECTIVE: Studies on the effect of prenatal exposure to magnetic field (MF) on fetal growth is inconclusive and subject to some methodological limitations, particularly in measurement of MF exposure. The present study aimed to examine the association between maternal extremely low frequency MF (ELF-MF) exposure during pregnancy and fetal growth in offspring. METHODS: A total of 128 pregnant women were recruited at their 3rd trimester and asked to wear an EMDEX Lite meter for 24 h to capture daily ELF-MF exposure. Time-weighted average (TWA), P50, and P75 of personal 24-h measurements were used to evaluate prenatal ELF-MF exposure. The medians of these measurements were used as cut-off points of high and low prenatal ELF-MF exposure. Fetal growth was measured by infant's birth weight, skinfold thickness of triceps, abdomen, and back, and circumference of head, upper arm, and abdomen. These measures were conducted within 24-h after birth. Generalized Linear Model was used to examine the association between maternal ELF-MF level and fetal growth indices after potential confounders were adjusted for. RESULTS: Compared with girls with lower prenatal ELF-MF exposure, girls with higher exposure had a lower birth weight, thinner skinfold of triceps, abdomen and back, and smaller circumference of head, upper arm and abdomen in all three ELF-MF matrices. The differences were statistically significant for birth weight and most other growth measurements (P < 0.05). These measures had no significant difference between higher and lower prenatal ELF-MF exposure in boys except back skinfold thickness. CONCLUSION: Prenatal exposure to higher ELF-MF levels was associated with decreased fetal growth in girls, but not in boys. Open access paper: ehjournal.biomedcentral.com

Machine Enhanced Logic

AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typecohort

Effect directionmixed

PopulationPregnant women recruited in 3rd trimester and their newborns

Sample size128

ExposureELF · 24 h personal measurement during 3rd trimester

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

In girls, higher prenatal ELF-MF exposure (based on 24-h personal measurements; TWA, P50, P75 dichotomized at the median) was associated with lower birth weight and smaller/thinner anthropometric measures, with statistically significant differences for birth weight and most other measures. In boys, no significant differences were observed between higher vs lower exposure groups except for back skinfold thickness.

Outcomes measured

Birth weight
Skinfold thickness (triceps)
Skinfold thickness (abdomen)
Skinfold thickness (back)
Head circumference
Upper arm circumference
Abdominal circumference

Limitations

Exposure measured for 24 h in the 3rd trimester only (may not represent exposure across entire pregnancy).
High/low exposure defined by median cut-points (may reduce exposure contrast and dose-response information).
Sex-specific findings (effects in girls but largely not in boys) complicate overall interpretation.

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "cohort",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "ELF",
    "source": null,
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "24 h personal measurement during 3rd trimester"
  },
  "population": "Pregnant women recruited in 3rd trimester and their newborns",
  "sample_size": 128,
  "outcomes": [
    "Birth weight",
    "Skinfold thickness (triceps)",
    "Skinfold thickness (abdomen)",
    "Skinfold thickness (back)",
    "Head circumference",
    "Upper arm circumference",
    "Abdominal circumference"
  ],
  "main_findings": "In girls, higher prenatal ELF-MF exposure (based on 24-h personal measurements; TWA, P50, P75 dichotomized at the median) was associated with lower birth weight and smaller/thinner anthropometric measures, with statistically significant differences for birth weight and most other measures. In boys, no significant differences were observed between higher vs lower exposure groups except for back skinfold thickness.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Exposure measured for 24 h in the 3rd trimester only (may not represent exposure across entire pregnancy).",
    "High/low exposure defined by median cut-points (may reduce exposure contrast and dose-response information).",
    "Sex-specific findings (effects in girls but largely not in boys) complicate overall interpretation."
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "prenatal exposure",
    "extremely low frequency",
    "ELF-MF",
    "magnetic field",
    "EMDEX Lite",
    "fetal growth",
    "birth weight",
    "skinfold thickness",
    "anthropometry",
    "sex differences"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "prenatal-exposure",
      "weight": 0.9,
      "reason": "Study examines maternal ELF-MF exposure during pregnancy and newborn growth outcomes."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1186/s12940-019-0447-9
PubMed: Not supplied

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