| Temporal Variability and Predictors of
Urinary Bisphenol A Concentrations in Men and Women Shruthi Mahalingaiah,1 John D.
Meeker,2 Kimberly R. Pearson,3 Antonia M. Calafat,4 Xiaoyun Ye,4 John Petrozza,5 and Russ Hauser5,6 1Department
of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brigham and Women's
Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA; 2Department of
Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann
Arbor, Michigan, USA; 3Department of Biostatistics, Harvard School of
Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA; 4Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA; 5The
Fertility Center, Vincent Memorial Obstetrics and Gynecology
Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical
School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA; 6Department of
Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston,
Massachusetts, USA Abstract
Background: Bisphenol A (BPA) is used to manufacture polymeric materials, such as polycarbonate plastics, and is found in a variety of consumer products. Recent data show widespread BPA exposure among the U.S. population. Objective: Our goal in the present study was to determine the temporal variability and predictors of BPA exposure. Methods: We measured urinary concentrations of BPA among male and female patients from the Massachusetts General Hospital Fertility Center. Results: Between 2004 and 2006, 217 urine samples were collected from 82 subjects: 45 women (145 samples) and 37 men (72 samples) . Of these, 24 women and men were partners and contributed 42 pairs of samples collected on the same day. Ten women became pregnant during the follow-up period. Among the 217 urine samples, the median BPA concentration was 1.20 µg/L, ranging from below the limit of detection (0.4 µg/L) to 42.6 µg/L. Age, body mass index, and sex were not significant predictors of urinary BPA concentrations. BPA urinary concentrations among pregnant women were 26% higher (–26%, +115%) than those among the same women when not pregnant (p > 0.05) . The urinary BPA concentrations of the female and male partner on the same day were correlated (r = 0.36 ; p = 0.02) . The sensitivity of classifying a subject in the highest tertile using a single urine sample was 0.64. Conclusion: We found a nonsignificant increase in urinary BPA concentrations in women while pregnant compared with nonpregnant samples from the same women. Samples collected from partners on the same day were correlated, suggesting shared sources of exposure. Finally, a single urine sample showed moderate sensitivity for predicting a subject's tertile categorization. Key words: bisphenol A, endocrine disruptors, environment, human, pregnancy. Environ Health Perspect 116: 173–178 (2008) . doi:10.1289/ehp.10605 available via http://dx.doi.org/ doi:10.1289/ehp.10605 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 6 November 2007]
Address correspondence to R. Hauser, Harvard School of Public Health, Department of Environmental Health, Environmental and Occupational Medicine and Epidemiology, 665 Huntington Ave., Building 1, Room 1405, Boston, MA 02115 USA. Telephone: (617) 432-3326. Fax: (617) 432-0219. E-mail: rhauser@hohp.harvard.edu We gratefully acknowledge the technical assistance of A. Bishop and J. Reidy (CDC) in measuring the urinary concentrations of BPA. This work was supported by grants ES09718 and ES00002 from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and grant OH008578 from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health ; the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ; or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The authors declare they have no competing financial interests. Received 27 June 2007 ; accepted 5 November 2007.
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