# name
Determining effects of areca (betel) nut chewing in a
                prospective cohort of pregnant women in Madang Province, Papua
                New Guinea

# metadata.dc.description.abstract[].value
BACKGROUND: Chewing areca nut (AN), also known as betel nut, is
                common in Asia and the South Pacific and the habit has been
                linked to a number of serious health problems including oral
                cancer. Use of AN in pregnancy has been associated with a
                reduction in mean birthweight in some studies, but this
                association and the relationship between AN chewing and other
                adverse pregnancy outcomes remain poorly understood. METHODS: We
                assessed the impact of AN chewing on adverse outcomes including
                stillbirth, low birthweight (LBW, <2,500 g) and anaemia at
                delivery (haemoglobin <11.0 g/dL) in a longitudinal cohort of
                2,700 pregnant women residing in rural lowland Papua New Guinea
                (PNG) from November 2009 until February 2013. Chewing habits and
                participant characteristics were evaluated at first antenatal
                visit and women were followed until delivery. RESULTS: 83.3%
                [2249/2700] of pregnant women used AN, and most chewed on a
                daily basis (86.2% [1939/2249]. Smoking and alcohol use was
                reported by 18.9% (511/2700) and 5.0% (135/2688) of women,
                respectively. AN use was not associated with pregnancy loss or
                congenital abnormalities amongst women with a known pregnancy
                outcome (n = 2215). Analysis of 1769 birthweights did not
                demonstrate an association between AN and LBW (chewers: 13.7%
                [200/1459] vs. non-chewers: 14.5% [45/310], P = 0.87) or reduced
                mean birthweight (2957 g vs. 2966 g; P = 0.76). Women using AN
                were more likely to be anaemic (haemoglobin <11 g/dL) at
                delivery (75.2% [998/1314] vs. 63.9% [182/285], adjusted odds
                ratio [95% CI]: 1.67 [1.27, 2.20], P < 0.001). Chewers more
                commonly had male babies than non-chewers (46.1% [670/1455] vs.
                39.8% [123/309], P = 0.045). CONCLUSIONS: AN chewing may
                contribute to anaemia. Although not associated with other
                adverse pregnancy outcome in this cohort gestational AN use
                should be discouraged, given the potential adverse effects on
                haemoglobin and well-established long-term health risk including
                oral cancer. Future research evaluating the potential
                association of AN use and anaemia may be warranted. TRIAL
                REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01136850 (06 April 2010).

# metadata.dc.relation.isformatof[].value
Reproducció del document publicat a:
                http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12884-015-0615-z

# metadata.dc.relation.ispartof[].value
BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 2015, vol. 15, num. 177, p. 1-9

# metadata.dc.source[].value
Articles publicats en revistes (ISGlobal)

# metadata.dc.title[].value
Determining effects of areca (betel) nut chewing in a
                prospective cohort of pregnant women in Madang Province, Papua
                New Guinea