Effects of 9/11 on birth outcomes

Shimul BegumDr.Sally Ann Lederman

Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health

http://www.ccceh.org/

Introduction

• Shortly after 9/11 an analysis of the dust samples in lower Manhattan indicated that there was a larger presence of pesticides and toxins such as (P.A.H’s) & ( P.C.B’s)

• Due to concerns for the pregnant women and their fetuses a study was started to analyze the birth outcomes of women who lived and worked in close proximity to the world trade centers.

• This study has been following the women and their newborns since birth to see how the children’s growth and development were affected by the toxins and fumes that resulted from 9/11.

• The study is now in its fifth year and will continue for this year.

Methods Step 1. Recruitment • Three hospitals downtown( Beth Israel, St.Vincents and the NYU

downtown) had maternity wards and were in close proximity to the WTC towers so they were used as the recruitment sites.

• Though these hospitals have patients from all over Manhattan due to the availability of bilingual staff a large percentage of the deliveries were from Chinese women who live in lower Manhattan.

• Pregnant women during either labor or delivery were asked to enroll by staff and those who agreed went through a screening process. This process started December 2001 and ended June 2002

Step 2. Eligibility• The women had to be from ages 18 through 39

• The women could not have smoked cigarettes or done any drugs during their pregnancy.

Methods II

Step 2 continued • The women also could not be in the study if they had diabetes, HIV

or AIDs• Lastly the women required one blood sample either maternal or cord

and their medical records to be fully enrolled in the study

Step 3. Data collection• Information about the pregnancy and delivery were collected from

medical records.( This includes newborns measurements such as weight and length)

• A thirty through forty five minute interview was administered to the mothers after delivery. This interview collected information such as distance of home and work sites from the WTC site four weeks after the event

Methods III

Step 3 continued• The gestational duration was measured and most of the women

who were in the study were actually in their first or second trimester of pregnancy during 9/11.

Step 4. variables• Some variables taken in to consideration were ethnicity and

Medicaid status which is a marker for poverty.• Some of the covariates were infant sex, maternal height, and

maternal medical complications.

Step 5. Analysis• Once all of the data is collected and the variables are taken in to

consideration ANOVA or Analysis Of Variance between groups is used.

Results

• women who were living within 2 miles of the WTC in the month following 9/11/01 had babies that were on average five ounces lighter then women who lived further away.

• Women who were living near the world trade centers one month after 9/11 had babies that were one third of a inch shorter then women who lived further away.

• Women who were in earlier stages of their pregnancies after 9/11 actually had shorter pregnancies by an average of 3.6 days and their babies had smaller head circumferences then the other babies in the study.

Results II

http://ccceh.org/research/wtc_pregnancy.html

Discussion

• The study has found that fetuses are very vulnerable to the toxins and pesticides found after the collapse of the world trade centers.

• This research should make people more aware that though the death and devastation caused by attacks and disasters are shocking ,they are not the only consequences.

• We will have to take more steps in the future to protect ourselves from toxins and other environmental hazards.

Future research

• CCCEH is planning to use the same exposure groups used in this research to find relationships between the WTC event and the children's IQ levels.

References

• Lederman SA. Rauh V. Weiss L. Stein JL. Hoepner LA. Becker M, et al 2004. The effects of the World Trade Center event on birth outcomes among term deliveries at three lower Manhattan hospitals. [Journal Article] Environmental Health Perspectives.112(17):1772-8, 2004 Dec.

Acknowledgements

• Dr.Sally Ann Lederman

• Columbia center for children's environmental health

• Dr. Sat Bhattacharya

• Harlem Children Society

Thank You