Journal
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES
Volume 122, Issue 10, Pages 1028-1039Publisher
US DEPT HEALTH HUMAN SCIENCES PUBLIC HEALTH SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.1307893
Keywords
-
Funding
- New York Community Trust
- U.S. EPA [GAIA-0-6-UCSF 17288]
- Internship/Research Participation Program at the National Center for Environmental Economics, U.S. EPA
- Clarence Heller Foundation
- Passport Foundation
- Forsythia Foundation
- Johnson Family Foundation
- Heinz Endowments
- Fred Gellert Foundation
- Rose Foundation
- Kaiser Permanente
- UCSF Institute for Health Policy Studies
- Planned Parenthood Federation of America
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences [ES018135, ESO22841]
- U.S. EPA STAR [RD83467801, RD83543301]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
BACKGROUND: The Navigation Guide methodology was developed to meet the need for a robust method of systematic and transparent research synthesis in environmental health science. We conducted a case study systematic review to support proof of concept of the method. OBJECTIVE: We applied the Navigation Guide systematic review methodology to determine whether developmental exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) affects fetal growth in humans. METHODS: We applied the first 3 steps of the Navigation Guide methodology to human epidemiological data: 1) specify the study question, 2) select the evidence, and 3) rate the quality and strength of the evidence. We developed a protocol, conducted a comprehensive search of the literature, and identified relevant studies using prespecified criteria. We evaluated each study for risk of bias and conducted meta-analyses on a subset of studies. We rated quality and strength of the entire body of human evidence. RESULTS: We identified 18 human studies that met our inclusion criteria, and 9 of these were combined through meta-analysis. Through meta-analysis, we estimated that a 1-ng/mL increase in serum or plasma PFOA was associated with a -18.9 g (95% CI: -29.8, -7.9) difference in birth weight. We concluded that the risk of bias across studies was low, and we assigned a moderate quality rating to the overall body of human evidence. CONCLUSION: On the basis of this first application of the Navigation Guide systematic review methodology, we concluded that there is sufficient human evidence that developmental exposure to PFOA reduces fetal growth.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available