Parental exposure to organic solvents and reduced birth weight

The authors investigated the association of birth weight with maternal and paternal exposure to organic solvents in 1,222 couples employed in a large petrochemical corporation in Beijing, China, during the period between 1994 and 1998. A trained interviewer assessed parental exposures to organic solvents. The authors used generalized additive models to examine the association between birth weight and parental exposure to organic solvents. After the authors adjusted for potential confounders, maternal exposure to solvents was significantly associated with reduced birth weight (-81.7 gm, 95% confidence interval = -106.3, -3.1), and reduced birth weights of female babies and of younger mothers' babies were statistically significant. Maternal exposure to organic solvents was associated with reduced birth weight in this population, but paternal exposure to organic solvents was not similarly associated.