Associations of maternal motor vehicle crashes during pregnancy with offspring's neonatal birth outcomes

Ya Hui Chang, Yu Wen Chien, Chiung Hsin Chang, Ping Ling Chen, Tsung Hsueh Lu, I. Lin Hsu, Chung Yi Li

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Background: Adverse events in fetuses are well researched but studies on the follow-up health outcomes of infants exposed to maternal motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) during pregnancy have yielded inconsistent results. This study aimed to investigate the association of maternal exposure to MVCs during pregnancy with the risk of adverse neonatal outcomes. Methods: This population-based cohort study used data from birth notifications in Taiwan. A total of 19 277 offspring with maternal exposure to MVCs during pregnancy and 76 015 randomly selected comparison offspring without such exposure were selected. Neonatal adverse outcomes were identified from National Health Insurance medical claims data. Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate the unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios (aORs) of neonatal adverse outcomes. Results: Offspring exposed to maternal MVCs during pregnancy had a higher risk of birth defects (aOR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.04-1.41) than offspring without such exposure. This positive association was sustained with exposure to an MVC during the first or second trimester. A dose-response relationship (P = 0.0023) was observed between the level of injury severity and the risk of birth defects. Conclusions: In the early stages of pregnancy, maternal exposure to MVCs may entail a risk of birth defects in the offspring. The potential mechanisms for the associations of maternal exposure to MVCs with birth defects need further investigation.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1774-1782
Number of pages9
JournalInternational Journal of Epidemiology
Volume52
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 1 2023

Keywords

  • birth defects
  • childbirth
  • Injury during pregnancy
  • neonatal outcome

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Epidemiology

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