Prenatal urinary BTEX metabolite levels and length of gestation: preliminary results from a metropolitan Detroit birth cohort.

Authors

Homègnon A Ferréol Bah, Qiong Zhang, Yichu Wang, Emily Leydet, Mei Lu, Judy Westrick, Paul Stemmer, Christine Cole Johnson, Jennifer K Straughen, Andrea E Cassidy-Bushrow

Published in

BMJ paediatrics open. Volume 10. Issue 1. Sep 19, 2026. Epub Sep 19, 2026.

Abstract

While the common volatile organic compound mixture benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX) is associated with preterm birth (PTB), most evidence derives from estimated rather than direct measures of exposure. Metabolites of BTEX were measured in urine samples from pregnant participants (N=40) to conduct a preliminary association study of BTEX metabolites and length of gestation. Metabolites of ethylbenzene (phenylglyoxylic acid (PGA)) and xylene (methylhippuric acid (MHA)) were negatively correlated with gestational length; the Spearman correlation coefficient (ρ) for PGA and gestational length was ρ=-0.37 (p=0.018) and for MHA and gestational length was ρ=-0.35 (p=0.026). Preliminary findings suggest prenatal ethylbenzene and xylene exposure may be associated with shorter gestational length. Ongoing work in a larger sample is underway to examine associations between BTEX metabolites, measured longitudinally across pregnancy, and PTB.

PMID:
42763106
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 20 Sep 2026.

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