Maternal occupational exposure to organic solvents during early pregnancy and risks of neural tube defects and orofacial clefts
- Correspondence to Dr Richard Gun, Department of Public Health, Adelaide University, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia; richard.gun{at}adelaide.edu.au
- Accepted 26 June 2012
- Published Online First 26 July 2012
- General expertise
- Epidemiology
- Organ system, disease, disease type
- Congenital anomalies
- Methodology, speciality
- Female reproductive effects and adverse pregnancy outcomes
- Materials, exposures and occupational groups
- Solvents
Desrosiers et al1 state that they have observed an increased prevalence of neural tube defects (NTDs) in the offspring of women exposed to chlorinated solvents during the periconceptional period. This observation is based on an adjusted OR of 1.96 for the exposed cases compared with the controls. This estimate of effect is only as valid as the exposure estimate, but exposure was not measured. Instead, the exposure is expressed as a probability, on the basis of a job-exposure matrix. Cases and controls were classified under any one of five categories according to the …
