PCE contaminated drinking water & disorders of reproduction & development

四氯乙烯(也称为全氯乙烯或PCE)是一种通常用于金属脱脂、纺织品加工和干洗的溶剂。关于接触PCE的生殖和发育毒性风险的研究表明，对动物和人类都有不利影响。这项拟议的流行病学研究将检验这样一个假设，即在马萨诸塞州科德角地区的公共饮用水供应分配系统中发现的PCE与以下生殖和发育结果有关：精子和月经异常、生育力受损、继发性不孕、自然流产、低出生体重、宫内发育迟缓、先天性畸形以及学习和注意力发育障碍。这将通过开展一项以人群为基础的回溯性队列研究来实现，研究对象包括大约2,200名暴露于受四氯乙烯污染的饮用水的科德角儿童及其家人，以及2,200名未接触污染的儿童及其家庭的可比组。这些家庭将使用马萨诸塞州1968至1983年的出生记录进行识别。在此期间，数以万计的科德角居民接触到了从石棉水泥饮用水管道的乙烯基衬里渗出的PCE。暴露组中的家庭将包括至少一名产前和产后接触PCE的儿童，以及在育龄期间暴露于PCE的母亲和父亲。将追踪队列家庭成员，并将采访母亲，以获得有关生殖和发育异常、混淆变量和居住史的信息。异常报告将通过记录审查进行核实。将从母亲那里提取口腔拭子，用于稍后通过分子方法检测敏感生物标志物。我们将使用为我们目前的超级基金基础研究中心开发的暴露模型和地理信息系统(GIS)数据库来估计接触受PCE污染的饮用水的情况。在控制混杂变量的同时，将计算与PCE暴露相关的每个不良结果的相对风险。将考虑到用水和母乳喂养做法的影响。

Tetrachloroethylene (also called perchlorethylene or PCE) is a solvent commonly used for metal degreasing, textile processing, and dry cleaning. Studies on the risk of reproductive and developmental toxicity associated with PCE exposure have shown adverse effects among animals and humans. The proposed epidemiologic study will test the hypothesis that PCE found in the distributions systems of public drinking water supplies in the Cape Cod region of Massachusetts is associated with the following reproductive and developmental outcomes: sperm and menstrual abnormalities, impaired fecundity, secondary infertility, spontaneous abortion, low birth weight, intrauterine growth retardation, congenital malformations, and developmental disorders of learning and attention. This will be accomplished by conducting a population-based retrospective cohort study including approximately 2,200 Cape Cod children and their families who were exposed to PCE-contaminated drinking water and a comparable group of 2,200 unexposed children and their families. Families will be identified using Massachusetts birth records from 1968 through 1983. During this period, tens of thousands of Cape Cod residents were exposed to PCE when it leached from the vinyl lining of asbestos cement drinking water pipes. Families in the exposed group will include at least one child with prenatal and varying amounts of postnatal PCE exposure, and mothers and fathers with exposures during their reproductive years. Cohort family members will be traced, and mothers will be interviewed to obtain information on reproductive and developmental abnormalities, confounding variables, and residential histories. Reports of abnormalities will be verified by record review. Buccal swabs will be sought from mothers for later testing for susceptibility biomarkers by molecular methods. Exposure to PCE- contaminated drinking water will be estimated using an exposure model and geographic information system (GIS) database developed for our current Superfund Basic Research Center. The relative risk of each adverse outcome will be calculated in relation to PCE exposure while controlling for confounding variables. The impact of water use and breast feeding practices will be taken into account.