MALE AND FEMALE OCCUPATION IN RELATION TO MISCARRIAGE AND PRETERM DELIVERY IN CENTRAL NORTH-CAROLINA

PURPOSE: This study was undertaken to evaluate the role of parental oc cupation in miscarriage and preterm delivery. Previous studies raise t he possibility that both male and female exposures could affect pregna ncy. METHODS: Data from a population-based study of miscarriage and pr eterm delivery in central North Carolina were used to examine potentia l associations with male and female occupation. Medically treated misc arriage cases (n = 418), preterm delivery cases identified through hos pital record review (n = 582), and term, normal birth weight controls (n = 787) were sought for telephone interview. The interview included information on jobs the woman held before and during the pregnancy, re ports of her partner's job around the time of pregnancy, and informati on on potential confounding factors. RESULTS: Female employment overal l, or in specific jobs, around the time of conception or early pregnan cy was not associated with the risk of miscarriage, whereas working du ring pregnancy, especially in the seventh month, was inversely associa ted with risk of preterm delivery. Male employment in several industri al occupations was weakly associated with miscarriage (adjusted odds r atios (OR) of 1.6 to 1.8), and somewhat more strongly associated with preterm delivery, particularly for chemists and sheet metal workers (a djusted OR over 3). Restriction to married men strengthened the associ ations. CONCLUSIONS: Our results are limited by nonresponse, imprecisi on, incomplete identification of miscarriages, and lack of detailed oc cupational exposure information. Nonetheless, we found greater support for further examination of male compared to female jobs in relation t o pregnancy outcome. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Inc.