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Exposure to Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals and Congenital Heart Diseases: The Pooled Results Based on the Current Evidence

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Abstract

The relationships between maternal exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and congenital heart diseases (CHD) are not elucidated yet. The exposure levels of EDCs are generally estimated based on self-reported questionnaires or occupational exposure evaluations in the literature. Therefore, a study based on epidemiological data from human biospecimens is required to provide stronger evidence between maternal exposure to EDC and CHD. Embase, Pubmed, Scopus, and the Cochrane Library databases were searched for related research which provided risk estimates regarding the relationships between maternal EDC exposure and CHD in human offspring. Baseline characteristics and outcomes of CHD were extracted from each included study. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were pooled to calculate the overall estimates of CHD. Subgroup and meta-regression analyses were performed to identify the sources of heterogeneity. Bootstrapping techniques were used in analyses where several studies originated from a similar population. A total of seventeen studies were involved in the meta-analyses. Maternal EDC exposure was significantly related to CHD in offspring (OR 2.15; 95%CI 1.64 to 2.83). EDC exposure was significantly associated with septal defects (OR 2.34; 95%CI 1.77 to 3.10), conotruncal defects (OR 2.54; 95%CI 1.89 to 3.43), right ventricular outflow tract obstruction (OR 2.65; 95%CI 1.73 to 4.07), left ventricular outflow tract obstruction (OR 3.58; 95%CI 2.67 to 4.79), anomalous pulmonary venous return (OR 2.31; 95%CI 1.34 to 4.00), and other heart defects (OR 2.49; 95%CI 1.75 to 3.54). In addition, maternal exposure to heavy metals, which included lead (OR 2.19; 95%CI 1.29 to 3.71), cadmium (OR 1.81; 95%CI 1.28 to 2.56), mercury (OR 2.23; 95%CI 1.13 to 4.44), and manganese (OR 2.65; 95%CI 1.48 to 4.74), increased risks for CHD significantly. In conclusion, based on the latest evidence, maternal EDC exposure may increase CHD risks in human offspring, especially in heavy metal exposure conditions.

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Data Availability

The datasets during and/or analyzed during the current study available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

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Funding

Chongqing Medical University Program for Youth Innovation in Future Medicine (W0204) and Natural Science Foundation Project of Chongqing, Chongqing Science and Technology Commission (CSTB2023NSCQ-BHX0010).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Children’s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China

    Jiangtao Dai, Gang Wang, Chun Wu, Zhengxia Pan, Hongbo Li & Yuhao Wu

  2. Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, China International Science and Technology Cooperation Base of Child Development and Critical DisordersChongqing Key Laboratory of Pediatrics, Chongqing, China

    Jiangtao Dai, Gang Wang, Chun Wu, Zhengxia Pan, Hongbo Li, Lianju Shen & Yuhao Wu

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  1. Jiangtao Dai
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  2. Gang Wang
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Contributions

Study conception and design: Jiangtao Dai and Yuhao Wu; Data acquisition: Gang Wang and Chun Wu; Analysis and data interpretation: Zhengxia Pan and Hongbo Li; Drafting of the manuscript: Lianju Shen; Critical revision: Yuhao Wu.

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Correspondence to Yuhao Wu.

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Dai, J., Wang, G., Wu, C. et al. Exposure to Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals and Congenital Heart Diseases: The Pooled Results Based on the Current Evidence. Pediatr Cardiol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00246-024-03478-w

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