Skip to main content
PMC home page
Environmental Health Perspectives logoLink to Environmental Health Perspectives
. 2000 Mar;108(3):205–211. doi: 10.1289/ehp.00108205

Susceptibility to infections and immune status in Inuit infants exposed to organochlorines.

E Dewailly 1, P Ayotte 1, S Bruneau 1, S Gingras 1, M Belles-Isles 1, R Roy 1
PMCID: PMC1637954  PMID: 10706525

Abstract

We investigated whether organochlorine exposure is associated with the incidence of infectious diseases in Inuit infants from Nunavik (Arctic Quebec, Canada). We compiled the number of infectious disease episodes during the first year of life for 98 breast-fed and 73 bottle-fed infants. Concentrations of organochlorines were measured in early breast milk samples and used as surrogates to prenatal exposure levels. Immune system parameters were determined in venous blood samples collected from infants at 3, 7, and 12 months of age. Otitis media was the most frequent disease, with 80. 0% of breast-fed and 81.3% of bottle-fed infants experiencing at least one episode during the first year of life. During the second follow-up period, the risk of otitis media increased with prenatal exposure to p,p'-DDE, hexachlorobenzene, and dieldrin. The relative risk (RR) for 4- to 7-month-old infants in the highest tertile of p, p'-DDE exposure as compared to infants in the lowest tertile was 1. 87 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.07-3.26]. The RR of otitis media over the entire first year of life also increased with prenatal exposure to p,p'-DDE (RR, 1.52; CI, 1.05-2.22) and hexachlorobenzene (RR, 1.49; CI, 1.10-2.03). Furthermore, the RR of recurrent otitis media ( [Greater/equal to] 3 episodes) increased with prenatal exposure to these compounds. No clinically relevant differences were noted between breast-fed and bottle-fed infants with regard to immunologic parameters, and prenatal organochlorine exposure was not associated with immunologic parameters. We conclude that prenatal organochlorine exposure could be a risk factor for acute otitis media in Inuit infants.

Full text

PDF
205

Images in this article

206Figure 1
on p.206

Selected References

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

  1. Abraham K., Knoll A., Ende M., Päpke O., Helge H. Intake, fecal excretion, and body burden of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in breast-fed and formula-fed infants. Pediatr Res. 1996 Nov;40(5):671–679. doi: 10.1203/00006450-199611000-00005. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Ayotte P., Carrier G., Dewailly E. Health risk assessment for inuit newborns exposed to dioxin-like compounds through breast feeding. Chemosphere. 1996 Feb;32(3):531–542. doi: 10.1016/0045-6535(96)00003-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Ayotte P., Dewailly E., Ryan J. J., Bruneau S., Lebel G. PCBs and dioxin-like compounds in plasma of adult Inuit living in Nunavik (Arctic Quebec). Chemosphere. 1997 Mar-Apr;34(5-7):1459–1468. doi: 10.1016/s0045-6535(97)00442-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Barnett J. B., Barfield L., Walls R., Joyner R., Owens R., Soderberg L. S. The effect of in utero exposure to hexachlorobenzene on the developing immune response of BALB/c mice. Toxicol Lett. 1987 Dec;39(2-3):263–274. doi: 10.1016/0378-4274(87)90242-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Barrie L. A., Gregor D., Hargrave B., Lake R., Muir D., Shearer R., Tracey B., Bidleman T. Arctic contaminants: sources, occurrence and pathways. Sci Total Environ. 1992 Jul 15;122(1-2):1–74. doi: 10.1016/0048-9697(92)90245-n. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Chang K. J., Hsieh K. H., Lee T. P., Tang S. Y., Tung T. C. Immunologic evaluation of patients with polychlorinated biphenyl poisoning: determination of lymphocyte subpopulations. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 1981 Oct;61(1):58–63. doi: 10.1016/0041-008x(81)90007-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Chao W. Y., Hsu C. C., Guo Y. L. Middle-ear disease in children exposed prenatally to polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated dibenzofurans. Arch Environ Health. 1997 Jul-Aug;52(4):257–262. doi: 10.1080/00039899709602195. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Dewailly E., Ayotte P., Bruneau S., Laliberté C., Muir D. C., Norstrom R. J. Inuit exposure to organochlorines through the aquatic food chain in arctic québec. Environ Health Perspect. 1993 Dec;101(7):618–620. doi: 10.1289/ehp.93101618. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Dewailly E., Ayotte P., Laliberté C., Weber J. P., Gingras S., Nantel A. J. Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) and dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethylene (DDE) concentrations in the breast milk of women in Quebec. Am J Public Health. 1996 Sep;86(9):1241–1246. doi: 10.2105/ajph.86.9.1241. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Dufour R. The otitis media among Inuit children. Proposal for a new approach. Arctic Med Res. 1988;47 (Suppl 1):659–665. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Hoffman R. E., Stehr-Green P. A., Webb K. B., Evans R. G., Knutsen A. P., Schramm W. F., Staake J. L., Gibson B. B., Steinberg K. K. Health effects of long-term exposure to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin. JAMA. 1986 Apr 18;255(15):2031–2038. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Holladay S. D., Luster M. I. Alterations in fetal thymic and liver hematopoietic cells as indicators of exposure to developmental immunotoxicants. Environ Health Perspect. 1996 Aug;104 (Suppl 4):809–813. doi: 10.1289/ehp.96104s4809. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Huisman M., Eerenstein S. E., Koopman-Esseboom C., Brouwer M., Fidler V., Muskiet F. A., Sauer P. J., Boersma E. R. Perinatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and dioxins through dietary intake. Chemosphere. 1995 Nov;31(10):4273–4287. doi: 10.1016/0045-6535(95)00296-k. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Infante-Rivard C., Fernández A. Otitis media in children: frequency, risk factors, and research avenues. Epidemiol Rev. 1993;15(2):444–465. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.epirev.a036129. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Lim D. J., DeMaria T. F., Bakaletz L. O. Current concepts of pathogenesis of otitis media: a review. Acta Otolaryngol Suppl. 1988;458:174–180. doi: 10.3109/00016488809125125. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Ling D., McCoy R. H., Levinson E. D. The incidence of middle ear disease and its educational implications among Baffin Island Eskimo children. Can J Public Health. 1969 Oct;60(10):385–390. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Lockhart W. L., Wagemann R., Tracey B., Sutherland D., Thomas D. J. Presence and implications of chemical contaminants in the freshwaters of the Canadian Arctic. Sci Total Environ. 1992 Jul 15;122(1-2):165–245. doi: 10.1016/0048-9697(92)90248-q. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Muir D. C., Wagemann R., Hargrave B. T., Thomas D. J., Peakall D. B., Norstrom R. J. Arctic marine ecosystem contamination. Sci Total Environ. 1992 Jul 15;122(1-2):75–134. doi: 10.1016/0048-9697(92)90246-o. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Pukander J., Luotonen J., Sipilä M., Timonen M., Karma P. Incidence of acute otitis media. Acta Otolaryngol. 1982 May-Jun;93(5-6):447–453. doi: 10.3109/00016488209130903. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Reed D., Struve S., Maynard J. E. Otitis media and hearing deficiency among Eskimo children: a cohort study. Am J Public Health Nations Health. 1967 Sep;57(9):1657–1662. doi: 10.2105/ajph.57.9.1657. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Rogan W. J., Gladen B. C., Hung K. L., Koong S. L., Shih L. Y., Taylor J. S., Wu Y. C., Yang D., Ragan N. B., Hsu C. C. Congenital poisoning by polychlorinated biphenyls and their contaminants in Taiwan. Science. 1988 Jul 15;241(4863):334–336. doi: 10.1126/science.3133768. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Teele D. W., Klein J. O., Rosner B. Epidemiology of otitis media during the first seven years of life in children in greater Boston: a prospective, cohort study. J Infect Dis. 1989 Jul;160(1):83–94. doi: 10.1093/infdis/160.1.83. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Thomas D. J., Tracey B., Marshall H., Norstrom R. J. Arctic terrestrial ecosystem contamination. Sci Total Environ. 1992 Jul 15;122(1-2):135–164. doi: 10.1016/0048-9697(92)90247-p. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Timmermans F. J., Gerson S. Chronic granulomatous otitis media in bottle-fed Inuit children. Can Med Assoc J. 1980 Mar 8;122(5):545–547. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Weisglas-Kuperus N., Sas T. C., Koopman-Esseboom C., van der Zwan C. W., De Ridder M. A., Beishuizen A., Hooijkaas H., Sauer P. J. Immunologic effects of background prenatal and postnatal exposure to dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls in Dutch infants. Pediatr Res. 1995 Sep;38(3):404–410. doi: 10.1203/00006450-199509000-00022. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Environmental Health Perspectives are provided here courtesy of National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

RESOURCES