Menstrual cycle characteristics in fertile women from Greenland, Poland and Ukraine exposed to perfluorinated chemicals:a cross-sectional study

STUDY QUESTION: Does perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanate (PFOA) exposure disrupt the menstrual cyclicity? SUMMARY ANSWER: The female reproductive system may be sensitive to PFOA exposure, with longer menstrual cycle length at higher exposure. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: PFOS and PFOA a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Human Reproduction
Main Authors: Lyngsø, J, Ramlau-Hansen, C H, Høyer, B B, Støvring, H, Bonde, J P, Jönsson, B A G, Lindh, C H, Pedersen, H S, Ludwicki, J K, Zviezdai, V, Toft, G
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2014
Subjects:
Alkanesulfonic Acids
Body Mass Index
Caprylates
Cohort Studies
Cross-Sectional Studies
Environmental Exposure
Female
Fluorocarbons
Greenland
Humans
Menstrual Cycle
Menstruation Disturbances
Poland
Prenatal Care
Questionnaires
Regression Analysis
Smoking
Ukraine
Online Access:https://curis.ku.dk/portal/da/publications/menstrual-cycle-characteristics-in-fertile-women-from-greenland-poland-and-ukraine-exposed-to-perfluorinated-chemicals(c353a055-e102-41a1-8257-4384970d2e9b).html
https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/det390
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Summary:STUDY QUESTION: Does perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanate (PFOA) exposure disrupt the menstrual cyclicity? SUMMARY ANSWER: The female reproductive system may be sensitive to PFOA exposure, with longer menstrual cycle length at higher exposure. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: PFOS and PFOA are persistent man-made chemicals. Experimental animal studies suggest they are reproductive toxicants but epidemiological findings are inconsistent. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION: A cross-sectional study including 1623 pregnant women from the INUENDO cohort enrolled during antenatal care visits between June 2002 and May 2004 in Greenland, Poland and Ukraine. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS: Information on menstrual cycle characteristics was obtained by questionnaires together with a blood sample from each pregnant woman. Serum concentrations of PFOS and PFOA were measured by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Multiple imputations were performed to account for missing data. The association between PFOS/PFOA and menstrual cycle length (short cycle: ≤24 days, long cycle: ≥32 days) and irregularities (≥7 days in difference between cycles) was analyzed using logistic regression with tertiles of exposure. Estimates are given as adjusted odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE: Higher exposure levels of PFOA were associated with longer menstrual cycles in pooled estimates of all three countries. Compared with women in the lowest exposure tertile, the adjusted OR of long cycles was 1.8 (95% CI: 1.0; 3.3) among women in the highest tertile of PFOA exposure. No significant associations were observed between PFOS exposure and menstrual cycle characteristics. However, we observed a tendency toward more irregular cycles with higher exposure to PFOS [OR 1.7 (95% CI: 0.8; 3.5)]. The overall response rate was 45.3% with considerable variation between countries (91.3% in Greenland, 69.1% in Poland and 26.3% in Ukraine). LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION: Possible ...

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