Effect of Elevated Ambient Temperature on Maternal, Foetal, and Neonatal Outcomes: A Scoping Review

Yohani Dalugoda, Jyothi Kuppa, Hai Phung, Shannon Rutherford and Dung Phung
Additional contact information
Yohani Dalugoda: School of Medicine and Dentistry, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD 4222, Australia
Jyothi Kuppa: School of Medicine and Dentistry, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD 4222, Australia
Hai Phung: School of Medicine and Dentistry, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD 4222, Australia
Shannon Rutherford: School of Medicine and Dentistry, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD 4222, Australia
Dung Phung: School of Public Health, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4006, Australia

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 3, 1-22

Abstract: This scoping review provides an overview of the published literature, identifies research gaps, and summarises the current evidence of the association between elevated ambient temperature exposure during pregnancy and adverse maternal, foetal, and neonatal outcomes. Following the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews reporting guidelines, a systematic search was conducted on CINAHL, PubMed, and Embase and included original articles published in the English language from 2015 to 2020 with no geographical limitations. A total of seventy-five studies were included, conducted across twenty-four countries, with a majority in the USA ( n = 23) and China ( n = 13). Study designs, temperature metrics, and exposure windows varied considerably across studies. Of the eighteen heat-associated adverse maternal, foetal, and neonatal outcomes identified, pre-term birth was the most common outcome ( n = 30), followed by low birth weight ( n = 11), stillbirth ( n = 9), and gestational diabetes mellitus ( n = 8). Overall, papers reported an increased risk with elevated temperature exposures. Less attention has been paid to relationships between heat and the diverse range of other adverse outcomes such as congenital anomalies and neonatal mortality. Further research on these less-reported outcomes is needed to improve understanding and the effect size of these relationships with elevated temperatures, which we know will be exacerbated by climate change.

Keywords: elevated ambient temperature; maternal foetal and neonatal outcomes; exposure windows; temperature metrices; environmental risk factor; scoping review (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1771/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1771/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:3:p:1771-:d:742110

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().