Abstract
ObjectivePrevious studies regarding the association between parental smoking and the risk of childhood brain tumors (CBT) have reported inconsistent results. We performed a meta-analysis to summarize evidence on this association and to quantify the potential dose-response relationship.MethodsA systematic literature search was conducted in the Medline and Embase databases. The summary relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. Dose–response meta-analysis was also performed for studies that reported categorical risk estimates for a series of smoking exposure levels.ResultsA total of 17 studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria. In the meta-analyses, the summary RRs (95% CIs) of CBT for maternal smoking during pregnancy, paternal smoking during pregnancy, maternal smoking before pregnancy, and paternal smoking before pregnancy were 0.96 (0.86–1.07), 1.09 (0.97–1.22), 0.93 (0.85–1.00), and 1.09 (1.00–1.20), respectively. Dose-response meta-analysis also showed no significant association between parental smoking and the risk of CBT.ConclusionsFindings from our meta-analysis indicate that parental smoking may not be associated with a risk of CBT.
Highlights
Childhood brain tumors (CBT) are one of the most common types of cancers in infants and children and they account for approximately 20 to 25% of total primary pediatric tumor diagnoses [1]
Search Strategy We conducted a literature search of Medline and Embase for studies examining the association between parental smoking and the risk of CBT
The summary relative risks (RRs) of CBT for an increase of 10 cigarettes per day were 0.98, 1.04, 0.95, and 1.02 for maternal smoking during pregnancy, paternal smoking during pregnancy, maternal smoking before pregnancy, and paternal smoking before pregnancy, respectively (Figures 3 and S2)
Summary
Childhood brain tumors (CBT) are one of the most common types of cancers in infants and children (behind hematological malignancies) and they account for approximately 20 to 25% of total primary pediatric tumor diagnoses [1]. The exposure to environmental cigarette smoke during pregnancy could lead to DNA mutations and cytogenetic damage and has been shown to act as a transplacental carcinogen in animal studies [6,7,8]. Increased levels of carcinogenic tobacco-specific nitrosamines could be detected in the urine samples of newborns and the amniotic fluid in early pregnancy of parents who smoked cigarettes during pregnancy [9–
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