Residential proximity to hydraulically fractured oil and gas wells and adverse birth outcomes in urban and rural communities in California (2006-2015).

ABSTRACT:

Background

Prenatal exposure to hydraulic fracturing (HF), a chemically intensive oil and gas extraction method, may be associated with adverse birth outcomes, but no health studies have been conducted in California.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 979,961 births to mothers in eight California counties with HF between 2006 and 2015. Exposed individuals had at least 1 well hydraulically fractured within 1 km of their residence during pregnancy; the reference population had no wells within 1 km, but at least one oil/gas well within 10 km. We examined associations between HF and low birth weight (LBW), preterm birth (PTB), small for gestational age birth (SGA), and term birth weight (tBW) using generalized estimating equations and assessing urban-rural effe

SUBMITTER: Tran KV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8663888 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature