Alcohol and cigarette use during pregnancy and its relationship with BERA abnormalities in newborns with more than 35 weeks of gestational age

• Grant number: 16/11692-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: December 01, 2016
• End date: November 30, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Maternal and Child Health
• Principal Investigator: Carla Maria Ramos Germano
• Grantee: Gleice Aline Gonçalves
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde (CCBS). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The prevalence of cigarette use during pregnancy can reach 23% and up to 40% in the case of alcohol. There is evidence that intrauterine exposure to alcohol and cigarette can influence the embryonic development of auditory structures and their function, and causes hearing deficits that can lead to impaired development of the exposed individuals. These changes in the auditory pathways can be detected by BERA and OAE tests in the first days of life. Therefore this research aims to: (1) assess in a sample of mothers from the city of Sao Carlos the prevalence of alcohol consumption, smoking and passive exposure to cigarette smoke through T-ACE and Fagerstrom questionnaires (2) correlate questionnaires results with BERA results, (3) promote health education about healthy life habits and the effects of alcohol and smoking during pregnancy for the mothers. This study is cross-sectional, quantitative and will be developed in Santa Casa da Misericordia of Sao Carlos, on a convenience sample of approximately 600-800 newborns. BERA and OAE tests will be performed in the newborn's first 48 hours of life, OAE in screening and BERA in diagnostic mode. The data will be presented as mean ± standard deviation with significance level set at 5%. The statistical significance of the differences between the variables will be determined by analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by multiple comparison with Newman-Keuls test for 3 or more continuous variables (or T nonparametric test to compare two variables), and the chi-square test for categorical variables. Pearson's test will be utilized to assess the degree of correlation between variables. (AU)