The Relationship between Prenatal PCB Exposure and Intelligence (IQ) in 9-Year-Old Children

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Abstract
BackgroundSeveral epidemiologic studies have demonstrated relationships between prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and modest cognitive impairments in infancy and early childhood. However, few studies have followed cohorts of exposed children long enough to examine the possible impact of prenatal PCB exposure on psychometric intelligence in later childhood. Of the few studies that have done so, one in the Great Lakes region of the United States reported impaired IQ in children prenatally exposed to PCBs, whereas another found no association.ObjectivesThis study was designed to determine whether environmental exposure to PCBs predicts lower IQ in school-age children in the Great Lakes region of the northeastern United States.MethodsWe measured prenatal exposure to PCBs and IQ at 9 years of age in 156 subjects from Oswego, New York. We also measured > 50 potential predictors of intelligence in children, including repeated measures of the home environment [Home Observation for Measurement ...