SIDS Linked to Smoke Exposure in Womb

Early findings of an ongoing study show that prenatal exposure to cigarette smoke affects maturation of the infant's heart, which may increase the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The Italian joint study is being conducted by scientists at the universities of Florence, Rome, and Bari, who presented their findings at the annual congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

The scientists used a rat model to simulate intrauterine exposure to the toxic components of cigarette smoke. They found that exposure to carbon monoxide causes neonatal cardiac electrical alterations that may predispose an infant to SIDS. Their experimental model is based on prenatal chronic exposure to CO2 at a concentration of 150 ppm, simulating carboxyhemoglobin levels of a human cigarette smoker. Rat offspring were studied from the time of birth up to the age of two months, when they reached adulthood.

The researchers found that the rat pups had delayed maturation of some cellular electrophysiologic properties related to the determinant of the QT interval, the electrocardiographic index whose alteration may represent a latent risk factor for SIDS during the first weeks of life. Similar electrical abnormalities are well-known potential triggers for the occurrence of cardiac life-threatening arrhythmias. The research was led by Dr. Elizabeth Cerbai and Prof. Alessandro Mugelli of the department of pharmacology, University of Florence (Italy).




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