Prenatal vitamin D status and offspring's growth, adiposity and metabolic health: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

In this systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies, we aimed to estimate the associations between prenatal vitamin D status and offspring growth, adiposity and metabolic health. We searched the literature in human studies on prenatal vitamin D status and offspring growth in PubMed, up to July 2017. Studies were selected according to their methodological quality and outcomes of interest (anthropometry, fat mass and diabetes in offspring). The inverse variance method was used to calculate the pooled mean difference (MD) with 95 % CI for continuous outcomes, and the Mantel-Haenszel method was used to calculate the pooled OR with 95 % CI for dichotomous outcomes. In all, thirty observational studies involving 35 032 mother-offspring pairs were included. Vitamin D status was evaluated by circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) level. Low vitamin D status was based on each study's cut-off for low 25(OH)D levels. Low prenatal vitamin D levels were associated with lower birth weight (g) (MD -100·69; 95 % CI -162·25, -39·13), increased risk of small-for-gestational-age (OR 1·55; 95 % CI 1·16, 2·07) and an elevated weight (g) in infant at the age of 9 months (g) (MD 119·75; 95 % CI 32·97, 206·52). No associations were observed between prenatal vitamin D status and other growth parameters at birth, age 1 year, 4-6 years or 9 years, nor with diabetes type 1. Prenatal vitamin D may play a role in infant adiposity and accelerated postnatal growth. The effects of prenatal vitamin D on long-term metabolic health outcomes in children warrant future studies.

Effect of periodontal treatment in pregnancy on perinatal outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of periodontal treatment during pregnancy on maternal, fetal and neonatal outcomes. METHODS: This is a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials that evaluated the effect of treatment of periodontal diseases on pregnancy outcomes. Primary outcome was perinatal mortality. Secondary outcomes were maternal and neonatal morbidity. Outcomes were pooled using fix-effect or random effects models and presented as risk ratio (RR), or mean difference (MD), and 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: Twenty randomized controlled trials involving 8171 participants were included in this study. Periodontal treatment during pregnancy was associated with significantly decreased risk of perinatal mortality [N = 5942; RR = 0.53 (0.30-0.93); p = .03; heterogeneity (I2) = 0%, Number needed to treat (NNT): 162]. Periodontal treatment during pregnancy reduced risks of preterm birth [N = 7335; RR = 0.78 (0.62-0.98); p = .03; I2 = 72%, NNT = 37]. Periodontal treatment during pregnancy significantly increased birthweight (gram) [N = 4708; MD = 200.79 (63.34-337.24); p = .004; I2 = 93%]. Periodontal treatment during pregnancy was not associated with preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, cesarean section, small for gestational age, or congenital malformations. CONCLUSION: Periodontal treatment during pregnancy reduces the risks of perinatal mortality and preterm birth, and improves birth weight.

Association Between Vitamin D Supplementation During Pregnancy and Offspring Growth, Morbidity, and Mortality: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Importance: Whether vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy is beneficial and safe for offspring is unclear. Objective: To systematically review studies of the effects of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy on offspring growth, morbidity, and mortality. Data Sources: Searches of Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews were conducted up to October 31, 2017. Key search terms were vitamin D, pregnancy, randomized controlled trials, and offspring outcomes. Study Selection: Randomized clinical trials of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy and offspring outcomes. Data Extraction and Synthesis: Two authors independently extracted data, and the quality of the studies was assessed. Summary risk ratio (RR), risk difference (RD) or mean difference (MD), and 95% CI were calculated using fixed-effects or random-effects meta-analysis. Main Outcomes and Measures: Main outcomes were fetal or neonatal mortality, small for gestational age (SGA), congenital malformation, admission to a neonatal intensive care unit, birth weight, Apgar scores, neonatal 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) and calcium concentrations, gestational age, preterm birth, infant anthropometry, and respiratory morbidity during childhood. Results: Twenty-four clinical trials involving 5405 participants met inclusion criteria. Vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy was associated with a lower risk of SGA (RR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.52 to 0.99; RD, -5.60%; 95% CI, -0.86% to -10.34%) without risk of fetal or neonatal mortality (RR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.47 to 1.11) or congenital abnormality (RR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.61 to 1.43). Neonates with prenatal vitamin D supplementation had higher 25(OH)D levels (MD, 13.50 ng/mL; 95% CI, 10.12 to 16.87 ng/mL), calcium levels (MD, 0.19 mg/dL; 95% CI, 0.003 to 0.38 mg/dL), and weight at birth (MD, 75.38 g; 95% CI, 22.88 to 127.88 g), 3 months (MD, 0.21 kg; 95% CI, 0.13 to 0.28 kg), 6 months (MD, 0.46 kg; 95% CI, 0.33 to 0.58 kg), 9 months (MD, 0.50 kg; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.99 kg), and 12 months (MD, 0.32 kg; 95% CI, 0.12 to 0.52 kg). Subgroup analysis by doses showed that low-dose vitamin D supplementation (≤2000 IU/d) was associated with a reduced risk of fetal or neonatal mortality (RR, 0.35; 95% CI, 0.15 to 0.80), but higher doses (>2000 IU/d) did not reduce this risk (RR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.59 to 1.54). Conclusions and Relevance: Vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy is associated with a reduced risk of SGA and improved infant growth without risk of fetal or neonatal mortality or congenital abnormality. Vitamin D supplementation with doses of 2000 IU/d or lower during pregnancy may reduce the risk of fetal or neonatal mortality.