Table 3.
Descriptive statistics of mother-child pairs stratified into tertiles of global placental DNA methylation (Low; Moderate; High); Data are given as mean ± SD or %; BMI = body mass index; SBP = systolic blood pressure; DBP = diastolic blood pressure.
| Parameter | Methylation level | p | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low | Moderate | High | ||
| Placental DNA methylation (%) | 2.52 ± 0.18 | 2.98 ± 0.11 | 3.53 ± 0.34 | <0.001 |
| Age of the mother (years) | 29.7 ± 6.0 | 30.1 ± 6.2 | 30.3 ± 5.6 | 0.382 |
| Pre-pregnancy BMI (kg/m2) | 23.3 ± 4.6 | 23.2 ± 4.4 | 23.1 ± 4.8 | 0.819 |
| SBP 3rd trimester (mmHg) | 116.9 ± 10.9 | 116.7 ± 11.3 | 115.2 ± 11.3 | 0.089 |
| DBP 3rd trimester (mmHg) | 71.4 ± 7.5 | 70.1 ± 7.7 | 69.9 ± 7.4 | 0.017 |
| Smoking before pregnancy (%) | 43.2 | 33.5 | 32.2 | 0.005 |
| Diabetes before pregnancy (%) | 0.6 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 0.666 |
| Diabetes during pregnancy (%) | 4.4 | 4.7 | 9.7 | 0.006 |
| Diabetes in family (%) | 37.7 | 35.3 | 36.6 | 0.854 |
| Ethnicity (Caucasian/other; %) | 94.7/5.3 | 94.7/5.3 | 90.3/9.7 | 0.030 |
| Gestational age at delivery (weeks) | 38.8 ± 2.1 | 38.7 ± 2.1 | 38.8 ± 2.0 | 0.573 |
| Child birth weight (g) | 3367.0 ± 585.9 | 3295.9 ± 643.8 | 3403.4 ± 655.4 | 0.077 |
| Child head circumference (cm) | 34.8 ± 1.6 | 34.6 ± 1.8 | 34.8 ± 1.7 | 0.557 |
| Child birth length (cm) | 50.8 ± 2.9 | 50.4 ± 3.3 | 50.9 ± 3.3 | 0.066 |
| Sex of the child (m/f; %) | 50.7/49.3 | 48.1/51.9 | 44.3/55.7 | 0.238 |