Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Occupational and Environmental Medicine logoLink to Occupational and Environmental Medicine
. 1994 Jul;51(7):475–478. doi: 10.1136/oem.51.7.475

Occupational paternal exposure to benzene and risk of spontaneous abortion.

I Strücker 1, L Mandereau 1, M P Aubert-Berleur 1, F Déplan 1, A Paris 1, A Richard 1, D Hémon 1
PMCID: PMC1128017  PMID: 8044247

Abstract

OBJECTIVE--The purpose of this study was to evaluate the risk of spontaneous abortion among the wives of male workers occupationally exposed to benzene. METHODS--The wives of 823 men working in two chemical plants at the time of the study were asked to complete a questionnaire describing their pregnancies. The analysis of the 1739 pregnancies that ended in a spontaneous abortion or a birth is presented. The firms' payroll records provided all workers' employment history, including dates. Benzene exposure, graded at two levels (< 5, > or = 5 ppm), was determined for every job, so that benzene exposure for each worker's entire professional life (at these companies) could be assessed. This information was linked to the dates of the pregnancies reported in the questionnaires to enable the exposure status of each pregnancy to be defined (1270 non-exposed and 274 exposed). The frequency of spontaneous abortion, defined as the number of spontaneous abortions divided by the total of spontaneous abortions and births was evaluated. RESULTS--When adjusted for tobacco consumption, mother's age and pregnancy order, the odds ratio of the association between paternal exposure to approximately 5 ppm of benzene and the risk of spontaneous abortion was close to and statistically not different from unity (OR = 1.1; 95% CI (0.7-1.8). CONCLUSION--In this study paternal exposure to benzene did not increase the risk of spontaneous abortion.

Full text

PDF
475

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Briscoe J. Intervention studies and the definition of dominant transmission routes. Am J Epidemiol. 1984 Sep;120(3):449–455. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a113909. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Cordier S., Deplan F., Mandereau L., Hemon D. Paternal exposure to mercury and spontaneous abortions. Br J Ind Med. 1991 Jun;48(6):375–381. doi: 10.1136/oem.48.6.375. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Daniell W. E., Vaughan T. L. Paternal employment in solvent related occupations and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Br J Ind Med. 1988 Mar;45(3):193–197. doi: 10.1136/oem.45.3.193. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Jablonická A., Vargová M., Karelová J. Cytogenetic analysis of peripheral blood lymphocytes in workers exposed to benzene. J Hyg Epidemiol Microbiol Immunol. 1987;31(2):127–132. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Kalf G. F. Recent advances in the metabolism and toxicity of benzene. Crit Rev Toxicol. 1987;18(2):141–159. doi: 10.3109/10408448709089859. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Seiji K., Jin C., Watanabe T., Nakatsuka H., Ikeda M. Sister chromatid exchanges in peripheral lymphocytes of workers exposed to benzene, trichloroethylene, or tetrachloroethylene, with reference to smoking habits. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1990;62(2):171–176. doi: 10.1007/BF00383594. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Taskinen H. K. Effects of parental occupational exposures on spontaneous abortion and congenital malformation. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1990 Oct;16(5):297–314. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.1779. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Taskinen H., Anttila A., Lindbohm M. L., Sallmén M., Hemminki K. Spontaneous abortions and congenital malformations among the wives of men occupationally exposed to organic solvents. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1989 Oct;15(5):345–352. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.1839. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Taskinen H., Lindbohm M. L., Hemminki K. Spontaneous abortions among women working in the pharmaceutical industry. Br J Ind Med. 1986 Mar;43(3):199–205. doi: 10.1136/oem.43.3.199. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Yardley-Jones A., Anderson D., Jenkinson P. C., Lovell D. P., Blowers S. D., Davies M. J. Genotoxic effects in peripheral blood and urine of workers exposed to low level benzene. Br J Ind Med. 1988 Oct;45(10):694–700. doi: 10.1136/oem.45.10.694. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Yardley-Jones A., Anderson D., Lovell D. P., Jenkinson P. C. Analysis of chromosomal aberrations in workers exposed to low level benzene. Br J Ind Med. 1990 Jan;47(1):48–51. doi: 10.1136/oem.47.1.48. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Occupational and Environmental Medicine are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES