PATERNAL EXPOSURES AND CARDIOVASCULAR MALFORMATIONS

Possible associations between paternal exposures and cardiovascular ma lformations were evaluated in the Baltimore-Washington Infant Study, a population based case-control investigation of congenital heart disea se and environmental factors. Home interviews of case and control pare nts elicited information on parental home and occupational exposures. Analysis focused on twelve cardiac diagnostic groups and paternal expo sures incurred during the six months preceding the pregnancy. Associat ions were identified between jewelry making and atrial septal defect ( Odds ratio: 12.6; 95% confidence interval: 2.3-68.6) and membranous ve ntricular septal defect (8.1; 2.0-33.3), welding and endocardial cushi on defect with Down syndrome (1.8; 1.1-3.0), lead soldering and pulmon ary atresia (2.3; 1.14.9) and ionizing radiation and endocardial cushi on defect without Down syndrome (4.7; 1.7-12.6). Ionizing radiation wa s found to be associated with endocardial cushion defect with Down syn drome only when father was present at interview (5.6; 1.7-17.9); a sim ilar effect of father at interview was noted for paint stripping in re lation to coarctation of the aorta (3.5; 1.5-8.0) and muscular ventric ular septal defect (3.5; 1.5-8.5). Also, paint stripping was associate d with hypoplastic left heart only in the presence of family history o f cardiac defects (11.9; 2.4-60.0). This large study on cardiac diagno stic groups and specific preconceptional exposures provides new leads for further assessment of the role of paternal exposures on adverse pr egnancy outcome.