The correlation between PM2.5 exposure and hypertensive disorders in pregnancy: A Meta-analysis

Abstract Objective To find the correlation between exposure to PM2.5 (fine particulate matter) and hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (HDP), and provide medical evidence for decreasing the incidence of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy. Method A combination of computer and manual retrieval was used to search for keywords in PubMed (385 records), Cochrane Library (20 records), Web of Science (419 records) and Embase (325 records). Finally, ten epidemiological articles were considered in this meta-analysis. Stata 13.0 was used to examine the heterogeneity among the studies and to calculate the combined effect value (OR, odds ratio) by selecting the corresponding models. Sensitivity analysis and publication bias test were also performed. Results Meta-analysis indicated that there was an association between PM2.5 exposure (per 10 µg/m3 increase) and hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (OR = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.24–1.87). Exposure to PM2.5 (per 10 µg/m3 increase) enhanced the risk of pre-eclampsia (OR = 1.31, 95% CI: 1.07–1.61), but there was no evidence relating exposure to PM2.5 to gestational hypertension (OR = 1.35, 95% CI: 0.98–1.87). Conclusion There is a significant link between exposure to PM2.5 and hypertensive disorders in pregnancy. The first and the third trimester were more susceptible to PM2.5 exposure. It is recommended to further strengthen protective measures against PM2.5 during pregnancy.