Association of Ambient air Pollution with risk of preeclampsia during pregnancy: a retrospective cohort study

BACKGROUND: Ambient air pollution is becoming a serious environmental problem in China. The results were inconsistent on that air pollution was a risk factor of preeclampsia in pregnancy. METHODS: Total 116,042 pregnant women were enrolled from 22 hospitals in 10 cities of Hebei Province, China from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2017. The parturients were divided into preeclampsia group (PE group) and non-preeclampsia group (non-PE group). The data of air pollutants, namely, particulate matter (PM)2.5, PM(10), NO(2), SO(2), CO, O(3) were collected from China Environmental Inspection Station. RESULTS: Among the 116,042 pregnant women, 2988 (2.57%) pregnant women were diagnosed with preeclampsia. The concentrations of exposed PM(2.5), PM(10), NO(2) and O(3) in the PE group were significantly higher than those in the non-PE group, and they were risk factors of the PE group in the first and second trimester of pregnancy respectively. The concentrations of exposed SO(2) and CO in PE patients and non-PE women were not different, but high concentration of these air pollutants were risk factors to PE in the second trimester. CONCLUSION: The exposure to PM(2.5), PM(10), NO(2), O(3) were risk factors for preeclampsia in the first and second trimester of pregnancy, while only at high level, SO(2) and CO were risk factors for preeclampsia in the second trimester of pregnancy.