Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) and adverse pregnancy outcomes in Ahvaz, Iran

Narges Khodadadi,Narges Khanjani,Afsaneh Ghasemi,Maryam Dastoorpoor

doi:10.1186/s12978-022-01344-7

Abstract

BackgroundClimate change may jeopardize the health of mothers and their offspring. There are few studies on the association between increasing temperature and pregnancy outcomes. The aim of this study was to investigate the relation between Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) and adverse pregnancy outcomes including stillbirth, low birth weight (LBW), preterm labor (PTL), spontaneous abortion (SA), preeclampsia and hypertension in Ahvaz, Iran.MethodsDistributed Lag Non-linear Models (DLNM) combined with quasi-Poisson regression were used to research the effect of UTCI on adverse pregnancy outcomes. The effect of time trend, air pollutants (NO2, SO2 and PM10), and weekdays were adjusted.ResultsThe results showed that the low values of UTCI index (11.6 °C, in lags 0–6, 0–13) caused significant increase in the risk of preterm labor. However, hot thermal stress (high UTCI) significantly increased the risk of stillbirth in lag 0–13. We did not observe any significant relation between UTCI and other pregnancy outcomes in this study.ConclusionsIt seems like both hot and cold weathers can be associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Highlights

Climate change may jeopardize the health of mothers and their offspring
We examined the effect of temperature on some pregnancy outcomes, including low birth weight, preterm labor, spontaneous abortion, preeclampsia and gestational hypertension in Ahvaz city, which is one of the hottest cities in the world
29.0 ± 10.1 28.6 a Low birth weight b Preterm labor c Spontaneous abortion d Nitrogen dioxide e Sulfur dioxide f Particulate matter less than 10 microns g Universal thermal climate index

Summary

Introduction

Climate change may jeopardize the health of mothers and their offspring. The aim of this study was to investigate the relation between Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) and adverse pregnancy outcomes including stillbirth, low birth weight (LBW), preterm labor (PTL), spontaneous abortion (SA), preeclampsia and hypertension in Ahvaz, Iran. Scientists believe that the adverse health outcomes related to climate change are increasing rapidly [1]. Khodadadi et al Reproductive Health (2022) 19:33 the populations most vulnerable to the effects of climate change [2]. Increase in temperature in the warm season is significantly more dangerous than the cold season [6], and studies have reported a positive relation between preterm birth and heat wave exposure during pregnancy [7, 8]

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