A hospital-based case-control study to find out the association between prenatal exposure of household air pollutants and low birth weight among postnatal mothers attending a tertiary care centre in Chennai

Background: Indoor air quality is the air quality within and around buildings and structures. It is vital in determining the health status of a person. Indoor air pollution can predispose to development of several non-communicable diseases, especially among women and children. This study was undertaken to determine the patterns of indoor air quality in the houses of selected mothers and investigate the association between exposure to indoor air pollution and birth weight. Methods: A case control study was conducted among 117 postnatal women, admitted in a tertiary hospital using a semi structured questionnaire. The participants were divided into groups of cases and controls in the ratio of 1:2, resulting in 39 cases and 78 controls. The study period spanned from July 2023 to December 2023. Results: Among the cases, 48.71% were found to have been exposed to at least one household air pollutant against 38.46% among the controls. Factors which were found to have significant causative association towards birth of low-birth-weight babies included exposure to fungal moulds in consumed food items (8.33% among cases against 0% among controls with a p value of 0.009) and presence of water leakage in houses (8.33% among cases against 0% among controls with a p value of 0.016). Conclusions: Antenatal exposure to fungal mold and water leakage were identified as major risk factors for low-birth-weight infants. Education and awareness regarding air pollutants and their management should be created among the general public.