Foetal and neonatal outcomes in women reporting ingestion of low or very low alcohol intake during pregnancy

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to assess the pregnancy outcomes of women who reported social intake of low or very low alcohol levels during pregnancy. Methods: Obstetric and foetal outcomes were assessed in a prospective cohort of 1667 pregnant women who reported low or very low alcohol consumption during pregnancy (cases) and 1840 alcohol-abstainer women (controls). Results: Among cases, alcohol consumption occurred during the first 4.4 (median) weeks of pregnancy, with a median ingestion of 1.0 (0.01–6.0) drinks/week, equivalent to 7.6 (0.09–47.5) g/week. Cigarette smoking was reported approximately four times more often in the exposed group than in the controls (p < 0.001). Pregnancy outcomes were similar between groups. There were 37 (2.4%) babies born with malformations in the exposed group and 41 (2.4%) in the control group (p = 0.9). Conclusions: Low-to-very low levels of alcohol ingestion during pregnancy do not appear to be associated with adverse maternal or foetal outcomes.

Keywords::

• Alcohol consumption
• teratogens
• transplancental exposure

Declaration of Interest: The study was supported by grant No. 11182KFDA556 from the Korean Food & Drug Administration.