Environmental Exposure to Pesticides and the Risk of Child Neurodevelopmental Disorders

• Published in: Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) Lithuania), 2024-03, Vol.60 (3), p.475
• Main Authors: Parrón-Carrillo, Rocio, Nievas-Soriano, Bruno José, Parrón-Carreño, Tesifón, Lozano-Paniagua, David, Trigueros, Rubén
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; Autism; Brain damage; Brain research; Breastfeeding & lactation; Child; Child Development; Children; Children & youth; Chromosome Aberrations; Early intervention; environmental exposure; Environmental Exposure - adverse effects; Female; Greenhouses; Health aspects; Humans; Hyperactivity; Infant; Learning; learning disorders; Male; Medical research; Medicine, Experimental; Microbiota; neurodevelopment; Neurodevelopmental disorders; Neurodevelopmental Disorders - chemically induced; Neurodevelopmental Disorders - epidemiology; Neurotoxicity; Pesticides; Pesticides - toxicity; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects - chemically induced; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects - epidemiology; Risk factors; Special education; Statistical analysis; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1648-9144; 1010-660X; 1648-9144
• DOI: 10.3390/medicina60030475

: Neurodevelopment is a fragile brain process necessary for learning from the beginning of childhood to adulthood. During the procedure, several risks could affect it, including environmental factors such as neurotoxic chemicals or environmental pollutants and, within them, exposure to pesticides. : This ecological descriptive study attempted to assess the association between environmental exposure to pesticides and neurodevelopmental disorders. This study was conducted on 4830 children diagnosed for 11 years in a total population of 119,897 children in three areas: high, medium, and low greenhouse concentrations. : Chromosomal abnormalities were the most common prenatal disorder (28.6%), while intrauterine physical factors were the least common (0.5%). Among perinatal diagnoses, gestational age less than 32 weeks was the most common (25%), while hyperbilirubinemia requiring exchange transfusion and birth complications was the least common (0.4%). Brain damage was the most common problem detected in postnatal diagnosis (36.7%), while unspecified postnatal abnormalities were the least common (3.1%). : The areas with the highest greenhouse concentration had higher incidences of neurodevelopmental disorders, particularly in boys, and lower age of referral. Chromosomal abnormalities were prevalent for prenatal diagnoses, gestational age below thirty-two weeks for perinatal diagnoses, and brain damage for postnatal diagnoses. Future studies should analyze the connection between pesticide exposure and neurodevelopmental disorders using spatial point pattern analysis.