Childhood Measures of NICU-based Chemical Exposure

Overview

This study aims to identify early life exposures to metals and chemicals by measuring the concentration of metals and organic compounds in shed primary teeth. The researchers will also investigate associations between the presence of these chemicals in teeth and children's social, emotional, and neuro-development.

Since children begin shedding their primary teeth around age 6, the investigators will enroll children who will be turning 6 in the next two years. First, the investigators will follow up with the children's development by conducting a battery of non-invasive neurodevelopmental tests. Also, the parents will be asked to complete a questionnaire called the Child Behavior Checklist, which assesses behavioral problems. Then, each child's parent will be asked to send the research team 2-3 teeth that their child has shed, or to send teeth as they are shed over the next three years. Dr. Stroustrup's collaborator, Dr. Manish Arora, will perform a temporal analysis of chemical distribution for each tooth to determine each child's environmental exposures during the perinatal and neonatal periods.

Conditions

Eligibility

Outcomes