A biomarker‐based study of prenatal smoking exposure and autism in a Finnish national birth cohort

Abstract

Maternal exposure to tobacco smoke during pregnancy is a common and persistent exposure linked to adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in the offspring. However, previous studies provide mixed evidence regarding the relationship between prenatal smoking and offspring autism. This study used cotinine level, a biomarker for nicotine, to investigate the relationship between prenatal smoking and autism. The authors conducted a population-based case-control study nested in a national cohort of all births in Finland from 1987 to 2005. Cases diagnosed with childhood autism (ICD-10/9 code F84.0/299.0) through 2007 were identified using data from linked national registers. Each case was matched with a control on date of birth (AE30 days), sex, and place of birth (N = 962 pairs). Maternal serum cotinine levels were prospectively measured in first-to early secondtrimester serum samples archived in a national biobank using a quantitative immunoassay. Data were analyzed using conditional logistic regression. Prenatal maternal levels of serum cotinine were not associated with the odds of autism, whether cotinine was classified continuously, by deciles, or using previously defined categories corresponding to probable maternal smoking status. After adjusting for maternal age, paternal age, previous births, and any history of parental psychiatric disorder, the odds ratio for categorical high versus low cotinine, using a 3-level exposure variable, was 0.98 (95% CI = 0.76, 1.26; p = 0.88). In conclusion, this national birth cohort-based study does not provide evidence for an association between maternal cotinine, a biomarker of maternal smoking, and risk of autism.

Maternal and paternal licit and illicit drug use, smoking and drinking and autism spectrum disorder

“…Active or passive maternal smoking anytime during pregnancy has also been related to increased risk of ASD, particularly when it involves more than 20 cigarettes a day 6,16,17 . In contrast, other studies assessing serum cotinine levels (a nicotine biomarker) during pregnancy among mothers who smoke or are exposed to tobacco smoke found no association between maternal smoking and ASD 28,29 .…”

“…With regard to smoking, drinking and illicit drug use, the findings on exposure to smoking are inconclusive, with some studies reporting no significant association with ASD [28][29][30] and others finding that maternal and/or paternal smoking is related to a greater chance of ASD 3,6,[15][16][17][18][19] . Studies on the relationship between drinking 20,21 and illicit drug use 15,22 during pregnancy are scarce and findings are inconsistent.…”

Uso de álcool e tabaco durante a gestação e a incidência do Transtorno do Espectro Autista

“…O uso da droga pode ser tanto direto, pelo uso da mãe, quanto indireto, por meio do fumo ambiental. Nesse contexto, dentre as possíveis hipóteses sobre os mecanismos dessa influência pelo tabaco estão as modificações epigenéticas encontradas no sangue de crianças e adolescentes expostos à substância durante o período pré-natal (Joubet et al, 2016apud Charamaschi et al, 2018Cheslack-Postava et al, 2021).…”

“…Research, Society andDevelopment, v. 13, n. 5, e8413545747, 2024 (CC BY 4.0) | ISSN 2525-3409 | DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v13i5.45747 6 Nesse âmbito, os achados na literatura acerca de uma relação de causalidade entre tais exposições e a incidência de autismo são divergentes. A dificuldade em avaliar a referida questão pode estar associada a influências sociais e, principalmente, psiquiátricas nos padrões de consumo da droga, que estão relacionadas à incidência de TEA (Charamaschi et al, 2018;Cheslack-Postava et al, 2021).…”