Zhang Lin, Tian Jiaqi, Duan Shuyin
Clinical Medical Research Center for Women and Children Diseases, Key Laboratory of Birth Regulation and Control Technology of National Health Commission of China, Shandong Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital Affiliated to Qingdao University, Jinan, China.
Key Laboratory of Birth Defect Prevention and Genetic Medicine of Shandong Health Commission, Jinan, China.
Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2024 Dec 20;14:1476603. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1476603. eCollection 2024.
Atmospheric ozone is a common air pollutant with known impacts on maternal and fetal health. However, the relationship between gestational ozone exposure and susceptibility to respirovirus infection remains unclear. This study aims to assess the association between longitudinal ozone exposure during pregnancy and COVID-19 risk in late gestation.
This retrospective cohort study included 600 pregnant women (300 infected with SARS-CoV-2 and 300 uninfected) who delivered at one hospital in Jinan, China from November 2022 to January 2023. Individual ozone exposure levels throughout gestation were estimated based on local ambient monitoring data. Logistic regression models were constructed to examine the association between gestational ozone exposure and COVID-19 status in late pregnancy, adjusting for demographic and clinical variables.
In Jinan, ozone levels increased by 1.85 ppb annually and peaked between April and October, corresponding to winds from the south and southwest. Higher ozone exposure over pregnancy was associated with lower odds of SARS-CoV-2 infection in late gestation (OR per IQR increase = 0.60, 95% CI: 0.40-0.90). Compared to the lowest quartile (reference), the highest ozone quartile corresponded to a 99% decreased infection risk (OR = 0.01, 95% CI: 0.00-0.03). Increased maternal age and pre-pregnancy BMI were associated with higher COVID-19 risk.
Longitudinal ozone exposure during gestation may be protective against SARS-CoV-2 infection in late pregnancy. Further studies are needed to confirm this finding and elucidate underlying mechanisms. These results highlight the potential importance of environmental exposures in COVID-19 susceptibility.
大气臭氧是一种常见的空气污染物，已知会对母婴健康产生影响。然而，孕期臭氧暴露与呼吸道病毒感染易感性之间的关系仍不清楚。本研究旨在评估孕期纵向臭氧暴露与妊娠晚期感染新冠病毒风险之间的关联。
这项回顾性队列研究纳入了2022年11月至2023年1月在中国济南一家医院分娩的600名孕妇（300名感染了新冠病毒，300名未感染）。根据当地环境监测数据估算整个孕期的个体臭氧暴露水平。构建逻辑回归模型，以检验孕期臭氧暴露与妊娠晚期新冠病毒感染状况之间的关联，并对人口统计学和临床变量进行调整。
在济南，臭氧水平每年增加1.85 ppb，并在4月至10月达到峰值，这与来自南方和西南方向的风相对应。孕期较高的臭氧暴露与妊娠晚期感染新冠病毒的较低几率相关（每增加一个四分位间距的比值比=0.60，95%置信区间：0.40-0.90）。与最低四分位数（参照）相比，最高臭氧四分位数对应的感染风险降低了99%（比值比=0.01，95%置信区间：0.00-0.03）。产妇年龄增加和孕前体重指数增加与新冠病毒感染风险较高相关。
孕期纵向臭氧暴露可能对妊娠晚期感染新冠病毒具有保护作用。需要进一步研究来证实这一发现并阐明潜在机制。这些结果凸显了环境暴露在新冠病毒易感性中的潜在重要性。
