The effect of trihalomethane and haloacetic acid exposure on fetal growth in a Maryland county

Chad K. Porter*, Shannon D. Putnam, Katherine L. Hunting, Mark R. Riddle

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

64 Scopus citations

Abstract

As water flows from treatment plants to the tap, chlorine, used to disinfect surface water meant for residential use, reacts with residual organic and inorganic matter, creating chlorine disinfection by-products. In recent years, these by-products have been scrutinized as a potential reproductive and developmental hazard. This study examined whether exposure to the four total trihalomethanes or the five haloacetic acids (two major subgroups of chlorine disinfection by-products) was related to an increased risk of intrauterine growth retardation in four regions of a Maryland county from 1998 to 2002. Maternal exposure to each by-product was evaluated for each trimester as well as over the entire pregnancy. The authors were not able to demonstrate any consistent, statistically significant effect on intrauterine growth retardation associated with any of the chlorine disinfection by-products, nor did they find any indication of a dose-response relation. However, they did find some potential for a slightly elevated risk of intrauterine growth retardation during the second and third trimesters for both total trihalomethanes and five haloacetic acids when comparing increasing quintiles of exposure to constituents of total trihalomethanes and five haloacetic acids.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)334-344
Number of pages11
JournalAmerican Journal of Epidemiology
Volume162
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2005
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Chlorine
  • Disinfectants
  • Fetal growth retardation
  • Trihalomethanes
  • Water supply

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The effect of trihalomethane and haloacetic acid exposure on fetal growth in a Maryland county'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this