Association of exposure to air pollutants with gestational diabetes mellitus in Chiayi City, Taiwan

Yuan-Horng Yan; Chu-Chun Chien; Panchalli Wang; Mei-Chun Lu; Yu-Ching Wei; Jyh-Seng Wang; Jun-Sing Wang

doi:10.3389/fendo.2022.1097270

Association of exposure to air pollutants with gestational diabetes mellitus in Chiayi City, Taiwan

Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023 Jan 16:13:1097270. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2022.1097270. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Yuan-Horng Yan^{1

2

3}, Chu-Chun Chien^{4

5}, Panchalli Wang⁶, Mei-Chun Lu¹, Yu-Ching Wei^{4

5}, Jyh-Seng Wang⁷, Jun-Sing Wang^{8

9

10

11}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medical Research, Kuang Tien General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
² Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Kuang Tien General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
³ Department of Nutrition and Institute of Biomedical Nutrition, Hung Kuang University, Taichung, Taiwan.
⁴ Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
⁵ Department of Pathology, Kaohsiung Municipal Ta-Tung Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
⁶ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ditmanson Medical Foundation Chia-Yi Christian Hospital, Chiayi, Taiwan.
⁷ Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
⁸ Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
⁹ Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan.
¹⁰ National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan.
¹¹ Department of Post-Baccalaureate Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan.

Abstract

Introduction: We investigated the associations of exposure to particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 μm (PM_2.5) and several gaseous pollutants with risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in Taiwan.

Methods: We retrospectively identified pregnant women who underwent a two-step approach to screen for GDM between 2006 and 2014. Information on concentrations of air pollutants (including PM_2.5, sulfur dioxide [SO₂], nitrogen oxides [NO_x], and ozone [O₃]) were collected from a single fixed-site monitoring station. We conducted logistic regression analyses to determine the associations between exposure to air pollutants and risk of GDM.

Results: A total of 11210 women were analyzed, and 705 were diagnosed with GDM. Exposure to PM_2.5 during the second trimester was associated with a nearly 50% higher risk of GDM (odds ratio [OR] 1.47, 95% CI 0.96 to 2.24, p=0.077). The associations were consistent in the two-pollutant model (PM_2.5 + SO₂ [OR 1.73, p=0.038], PM_2.5 + NO_x [OR 1.52, p=0.064], PM_2.5 + O₃ [OR 1.96, p=0.015]), and were more prominent in women with age <30 years and body mass index <25 kg/m² (interaction p values <0.01).

Discussion: Exposure to PM_2.5 was associated with risk of GDM, especially in women who were younger or had a normal body mass index.

Keywords: air pollution; gestational diabetes mellitus; hyperglycemia; particulate matter; pregnancy.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Air Pollutants* / adverse effects
Air Pollutants* / analysis
Air Pollution* / adverse effects
Diabetes, Gestational* / epidemiology
Diabetes, Gestational* / etiology
Female
Humans
Particulate Matter / adverse effects
Particulate Matter / analysis
Pregnancy
Retrospective Studies
Taiwan / epidemiology

Substances

Air Pollutants
Particulate Matter

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Kuang Tien General Hospital (KTGH) Research Funding [grant number KTGH106-1, 2017; grant number KTGH107-2, 2018]. The sponsors had no role in the design, execution, interpretation, or writing of the study.