Purpose: The relation between maternal pesticide exposures and neural tube defects (NTDs) in offspring was evaluated in 184 Mexican American case-women and 225 comparison women.
Methods: In-person interviews solicited information about environmental and occupational exposures to pesticides during the periconceptional period.
Results: With adjustment for maternal education, smoking, and folate intake, women who reported using pesticides in their homes or yards were two times more likely (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.2-3.1) to have NTD-affected pregnancies than women without these reported exposures. Case-women were also more likely to report living within 0.25 mile of cultivated fields than control-women (odds ratio [OR] 3.6; 95% CI, 1.7-7.6). As sources of pesticide exposure opportunities increased, risk of NTDs also increased. The adjusted ORs and 95% CIs for one, two, and three or more exposure sources were 1.2 (0.69-1.9), 2.3 (1.3-4.1) and 2.8 (1.2-6.3) respectively, and this positive trend was stronger for risk of anencephaly than for spina bifida.
Conclusions: Self-reported pesticide exposures were associated with NTD risk in this study population, especially use of pesticides within the home and a periconceptional residence within 0.25 mile of cultivated fields.