Abstract
BackgroundEnvironmental exposures and immune conditions during pregnancy could influence development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring. However, few studies have examined immune-triggering exposures in relation to ASD. We evaluated the association between parental workplace exposures to risk factors for asthma (“asthmagens”) and ASD.MethodsWe conducted a population-based case-control study in the Danish population using register linkage. Our study population consisted of 11,869 ASD cases and 48,046 controls born from 1993 through 2007. Cases were identified by ICD-10 codes in the Danish Psychiatric Central Register. ASD cases and controls were linked to parental Danish International Standard Classification of Occupations (DISCO-88) job codes. Parental occupational asthmagen exposure was estimated by linking DISCO-88 codes to an asthma-specific job-exposure matrix.ResultsOur maternal analyses included 6706 case mothers and 29,359 control mothers employed during the pregnancy period. We found a weak inverse association between ASD and any maternal occupational asthmagen exposure, adjusting for sociodemographic covariates (adjusted OR: 0.92, 95% CI: 0.86–0.99). In adjusted analyses, including 7647 cases and 31,947 controls with employed fathers, paternal occupational asthmagen exposure was not associated with ASD (adjusted OR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.92–1.05).ConclusionsWe found a weak inverse association between maternal occupational asthmagen exposure and ASD, and a null association between paternal occupational exposure and ASD. We suggest that unmeasured confounding negatively biased the estimate, but that this unmeasured confounding is likely not strong enough to bring the effect above the null. Overall, our results were consistent with no positive association between parental asthmagen exposure and ASD in the children.
Highlights
Environmental exposures and immune conditions during pregnancy could influence development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring
In Singer et al [16], we examined the association between maternal exposure to occupational asthmagens and ASD in the Study to Early Development (SEED), a U.S case-control study
In the SEED study, our findings were consistent with a null association between maternal asthmagen exposure and ASD
Summary
Environmental exposures and immune conditions during pregnancy could influence development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring. Windham et al [14] found an association between ASD and any maternal chemical occupational exposure, as well as exhaust/combustion products from engines and disinfectants, . Another case-control study comparing children with ASD to children with other developmental conditions reported associations between maternal and paternal occupational solvent use and ASD [15]. In the SEED study, our findings were consistent with a null association between maternal asthmagen exposure and ASD (aOR: 1.39, 95% CI: 0.96–2.02) Limitations of this analysis included a small sample size and concern over potential selection bias
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