Prenatal Exposure to Cadmium and Risk of Allergic Diseases in Pre-school Children

Abstract

Background/Aim: The prevalence of child’s allergic disease has been increased worldwide. Atopic dermatitis is considered to be the first clinical characteristic and the beginning of the atopic march that followed by asthma and allergic rhinitis during the first several years of life. Exposure to metals (such as chromium, cadmium and lead) was reported to associate with immune biomarkers and allergy. Our aim is to investigate the association between prenatal exposure to metals and allergic diseases in children. Methods: A total of 243 pairs of pregnant women and newborns were recruited in central Taiwan during 2012 to 2013, and the questionnaires and specimens were collected from pregnant women. Children were follow-up during 2016 to 2017 to identify their allergic disease by International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). Metal concentration (cadmium, Cd; lead, Pb) in maternal urine was measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and child’s blood IgE was quantified using ImmunoCAP total IgE assay system. A few cigarette smokers at pregnancy were excluded from the beginning. Child's sex, allergic status in parents, environmental tobacco smoke at pregnancy, and child’s blood total IgE were adjusted in statistical model. Results: The mean age of children is 3.95 years (SD = 0.56), and approximate 60% is boy. In these children, 30.45% were identified with atopic dermatitis, 3.70% with asthma, and 20.99% with allergic rhinitis. Per doubling increase of prenatal Cd exposure was significantly associated with elevated risk of allergic rhinitis in children (OR = 1.59; 95% CI 1.07, 2.36) even Pb was included in full-adjusted model. Conclusions: Prenatal exposure to cadmium has increased risk of allergic rhinitis in early childhood. Therefore, it is suggested to identify pregnant women at risk of metal exposure and avoid the exposure sources thus might reduce the risk of allergic disease on their children.