Prenatal and postnatal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) exposure and behavioral development in early adolescence.

Abstract

OPS 22: Behavioral effects of chemical exposures, Room 117, Floor 1, August 27, 2019, 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM Background/Aim: Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) has been linked with neurodevelopment outcomes in children. The aim of our study was to assess the relationship between exposure to PAHs in prenatal period as well as in early childhood and behavioral outcomes during the early adolescence. Methods: 168 adolescents (girls: 51.2%) from birth cohort, for whom PAHs exposure data (both prenatally and age of 3 years) were available and Child Behavioral Checklist (CBCL) was completed by mother between ages of 12 and 15 years. The multivariable Poisson regression model was used to estimate the betas for the association between the raw score for all CBCL outcomes and PAH exposure dichotomized according to median. Results: The median PAH exposure levels in the population under the study were 21.6 ng/m3 in prenatal period and 22.8 ng/m3 for the assessment in are of 3 years. Adolescents below the median for total prenatal PAH exposure compared to those above, were more likely to be withdrawn/depressed (beta=0.30; p=0.016), have somatic complaints (beta=0.44; p=0.002), present Rule-breaking (beta=0.65; p<0.001) and Aggressive behaviors (beta=0.29; p=0.001) as well as both summary outcomes - externalizing (beta=0.39; p<0.001) and internalizing problems (beta=0.27; p<0.001). While the highest exposure to PAHs at age of 3 years was related to Rule-Breaking (beta=0.55; p<0.001) and Aggressive behaviors (beta=0.26; p=0.003) and Externalizing problems (beta=0.33; p<0.001). Conclusions: The high exposure PAHs in prenatal period as well as during early childhood was related to higher likelihood of aggressive and rule-breaking behaviors during early adolescence.