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Background and purpose: Preterm birth is defined as birth before 37 weeks’ gestation and is a major cause of neonatal mortality and morbidity. The present study was done to determine the association between blood lead level in pregnant women and preterm delivery. Materials and methods: A longitudinal prospective study was performed on 1033 pregnant women referring to prenatal centers in Tehran from May 2010 to September 2011. All women’s gestational age was 14-20 weeks. Reproductive-demographic questionnaire was completed for data collection. Meanwhile, blood samples were taken to determine the lead levels. Blood lead level analysis was done by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry method. Results: The mean age of mothers was 26.7 ± 4.4 years of whom more were primiparous (53.3%) with normal BMI (51.1%). The incidence of preterm birth was 7% and the mean of blood lead level was 4.7 ± 4.9 µg/dl. Statistical analysis did not show any significant correlation between blood lead level and preterm birth (P= 0.7). Conclusion: The mean of blood lead levels in present study was in normal range (<10 µg/dl). The results of this study indicated that blood lead level in normal range has no effect on preterm birth.

Keywords: Pregnancy, preterm birth, blood lead level

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