ArticleEnvironmental health perspectives2016
Cord Blood Methylmercury and Fetal Growth Outcomes in Baltimore Newborns: Potential Confounding and Effect Modification by Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Selenium, and Sex.
Article in Environmental health perspectives, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- Association between maternal exposure to mercury during pregnancy and birth weight: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC pediatrics · 2026Pooled it
- Mercury and Prenatal Growth: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- Dietary patterns of early childhood and maternal socioeconomic status in a unique prospective sample from a randomized controlled trial of Prenatal DHA Supplementation.BMC pediatrics · 2016Trial
- Prenatal methylmercury exposure disrupts developmental trajectories and induces sex-specific toxicity in pubertal rats.Research square · 2026Article
- Maternal environmental exposure and early-life health risks: The modulating role of nutritional status-A scoping review.iScience · 2026Review
- Through the Eye: Retinal Changes of Prenatal Mercury Exposure in Grassy Narrows First Nation, Canada.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Associations between Urinary Mercury/Cadmium Concentrations and Anthropometric Features in Korean Children.Toxics · 2024Article
- Trimester-specific prenatal heavy metal exposures and sex-specific postpartum size and growth.Journal of exposure science & environmental epidemiology · 2023Article
- Article
- Maternal Metals Exposure and Infant Weight Trajectory: The Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS).Environmental health perspectives · 2022Article
- Heavy metal blood concentrations in association with sociocultural characteristics, anthropometry and anemia among Kenyan adolescents.International journal of environmental health research · 2022Article
- The First Exposure Assessment of Mercury Levels in Hair among Pregnant Women and Its Effects on Birth Weight and Length in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Article
- Prenatal exposure to multiple metals and birth outcomes: An observational study within the National Children's Study cohort.Environment international · 2021Observational
- Predictors and reproducibility of urinary organophosphate ester metabolite concentrations during pregnancy and associations with birth outcomes in an urban population.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2020Article
- Development of a Cumulative Exposure Index (CEI) for Manganese and Comparison with Bone Manganese and Other Biomarkers of Manganese Exposure.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2018Article
- Development and application of a novel method to characterize methylmercury exposure in newborns using dried blood spots.Environmental research · 2017Article
- Determinants of polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrations in erythrocytes of pregnant Japanese women from a birth cohort study: study protocol and baseline findings of an adjunct study of the Japan environment & Children's study.Environmental health and preventive medicine · 2017Article
- Blood mercury levels and fish consumption in pregnancy: Risks and benefits for birth outcomes in a prospective observational birth cohort.International journal of hygiene and environmental health · 2016Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 7 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMethylmercury (MeHg) may affect fetal growth; however, prior research often lacked assessment of mercury speciation, confounders, and interactions.
objectiveOur objective was to assess the relationship between MeHg and fetal growth as well as the potential for confounding or interaction of this relationship from speciated mercury, fatty acids, selenium, and sex.
methodsThis cross-sectional study includes 271 singletons born in Baltimore, Maryland, 2004-2005. Umbilical cord blood was analyzed for speciated mercury, serum omega-3 highly unsaturated fatty acids (n-3 HUFAs), and selenium. Multivariable linear regression models controlled for gestational age, birth weight, maternal age, parity, prepregnancy body mass index, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, selenium, n-3 HUFAs, and inorganic mercury (IHg).
resultsGeometric mean cord blood MeHg was 0.94 μg/L (95% CI: 0.84, 1.07). In adjusted models for ponderal index, βln(MeHg) = -0.045 (g/cm(3)) × 100 (95% CI: -0.084, -0.005). There was no evidence of a MeHg × sex interaction with ponderal index. Contrastingly, there was evidence of a MeHg × n-3 HUFAs interaction with birth length [among low n-3 HUFAs, βln(MeHg) = 0.40 cm, 95% CI: -0.02, 0.81; among high n-3 HUFAs, βln(MeHg) = -0.15, 95% CI: -0.54, 0.25; p-interaction = 0.048] and head circumference [among low n-3 HUFAs, βln(MeHg) = 0.01 cm, 95% CI: -0.27, 0.29; among high n-3 HUFAs, βln(MeHg) = -0.37, 95% CI: -0.63, -0.10; p-interaction = 0.042]. The association of MeHg with birth weight and ponderal index was affected by n-3 HUFAs, selenium, and IHg. For birth weight, βln(MeHg) without these variables was -16.8 g (95% CI: -75.0, 41.3) versus -29.7 (95% CI: -93.9, 34.6) with all covariates. Corresponding values for ponderal index were -0.030 (g/cm(3)) × 100 (95% CI: -0.065, 0.005) and -0.045 (95% CI: -0.084, -0005).
conclusionWe observed an association of increased MeHg with decreased ponderal index. There is evidence for interaction between MeHg and n-3 HUFAs; infants with higher MeHg and n-3 HUFAs had lower birth length and head circumference. These results should be verified with additional studies.
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