Zhang Peng, Li Shuailei, Zeng Hao, Sun Yongqiang
Department of Orthopedics, Huaihe Hospital Affiliated to Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan, China.
Henan Luoyang Orthopedic Hospital (Henan Provincial Orthopedic Hospital), Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Front Public Health. 2025 Apr 17;13:1428772. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1428772. eCollection 2025.
Identifying factors that hinder bone development in children and adolescents is crucial for preventing osteoporosis. Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) has been linked to reduced bone mineral density (BMD), although available data, especially in children and adolescents, are limited. We examined the associations between urinary hydroxylated-PAHs (OH-PAHs) and lumbar spine BMD, pelvic BMD, and total BMD among 8-19 years participants ( = 1,332) of the 2011-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Weighted linear regressions were employed to assess the associations between urinary OH-PAHs and BMD. Additionally, Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) and quantile g-computation (Qgcomp) models were utilized to investigate the effect of co-exposure of PAHs on BMD.
Several urinary OH-PAHs exhibited negative associations with lumbar spine BMD, pelvic BMD, and total BMD in children and adolescents. For instance, an increase of one unit in the natural log-transformed levels of urinary 1-hydroxypyrene and 2&3-Hydroxyphenanthrene was linked with a decrease of -0.014 g/cm (95% CI: -0.026, -0.002) and -0.018 g/cm (95% CI: -0.032, -0.004) in lumbar spine BMD, a decrease of -0.021 g/cm (95% CI: -0.039, -0.003) and -0.017 g/cm (95% CI: -0.033, -0.001) in pelvic BMD, and a decrease of -0.013 g/cm (95% CI: -0.023, -0.002) and -0.016 g/cm (95% CI: -0.026, -0.006) in total BMD. The body mass index modified the associations between urinary OH-PAHs and BMD, revealing negative effects on BMD primarily significant in overweight/obese individuals but not significant in underweight/normal individuals. Both the BKMR model and the Qgcomp model indicated a significant negative correlation between the overall effects of seven urinary OH-PAHs and lumbar spine BMD, pelvic BMD, and total BMD.
Our findings revealed that exposure to PAHs might hinder bone development in children and adolescents, potentially impacting peak bone mass-an essential factor influencing lifelong skeletal health.
识别阻碍儿童和青少年骨骼发育的因素对于预防骨质疏松症至关重要。多环芳烃（PAHs）暴露与骨矿物质密度（BMD）降低有关，尽管现有数据，尤其是关于儿童和青少年的数据有限。我们在2011 - 2016年国家健康与营养检查调查的8 - 19岁参与者（n = 1332）中，研究了尿中羟基化多环芳烃（OH - PAHs）与腰椎骨密度、骨盆骨密度和总骨密度之间的关联。
采用加权线性回归评估尿中OH - PAHs与骨密度之间的关联。此外，利用贝叶斯核机器回归（BKMR）和分位数g计算（Qgcomp）模型研究多环芳烃共同暴露对骨密度的影响。
几种尿中OH - PAHs与儿童和青少年的腰椎骨密度、骨盆骨密度和总骨密度呈负相关。例如，尿中1 - 羟基芘和2&3 - 羟基菲的自然对数转换水平每增加一个单位，与腰椎骨密度分别降低 - 0.014 g/cm²（95% CI： - 0.026， - 0.002）和 - 0.018 g/cm²（95% CI： - 0.032， - 0.004）、骨盆骨密度分别降低 - 0.021 g/cm²（95% CI： - 0.039， - 0.003）和 - 0.017 g/cm²（95% CI： - 0.033， - 0.001）、总骨密度分别降低 - 0.013 g/cm²（95% CI： - 0.023， - 0.002）和 - 0.016 g/cm²（95% CI： - 0.026， - 0.006）相关。体重指数改变了尿中OH - PAHs与骨密度之间的关联，显示对骨密度的负面影响主要在超重/肥胖个体中显著，而在体重过轻/正常个体中不显著。BKMR模型和Qgcomp模型均表明，七种尿中OH - PAHs的总体效应与腰椎骨密度、骨盆骨密度和总骨密度之间存在显著负相关。
我们的研究结果表明，多环芳烃暴露可能会阻碍儿童和青少年的骨骼发育，可能影响峰值骨量——这是影响终身骨骼健康的一个重要因素。
