Early development of Yu-Cheng children born seven to twelve years after the Taiwan PCB outbreak.

In Taiwanese children born seven to twelve years after their mothers' or fathers' intoxication of heat-degraded polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) (Yu-Cheng mothers or fathers), we measured the development and behavioral problems in 1991-2. The development was assessed with the Chinese Child Developmental Inventory (CCDI), and the behavioral problems with Rutter's Child Behavior Scale A. Children of Yu-Cheng mothers had delayed development on several subscales of CCDI and on the combined general development score. Girls were more affected than boys in their development. Children of Yu-Cheng fathers did not score differently from unexposed controls on this measurement. In Rutter's scale, the scores in Yu-Cheng mothers' children and Yu-Cheng fathers' children were not different from those of their unexposed controls. We conclude that children born seven to twelve years after mothers' exposure to degraded PCBs had delayed development, but they did not show more behavior problems when compared with unexposed controls.