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Am J Perinatol 2023; 40(11): 1185-1192
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1733786
Original Article

Association between Low Urban Neighborhood Greenness and Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy

Max Jordan Nguemeni Tiako 
1   Department of Emergency Medicine, Center for Emergency Care and Policy Research, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2   Urban Health Lab, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
3   Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut
,
Clare McCarthy
4   Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Maternal and Child Health Research Center, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
,
Zachary F. Meisel
1   Department of Emergency Medicine, Center for Emergency Care and Policy Research, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
5   Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania
,
Michal A. Elovitz
4   Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Maternal and Child Health Research Center, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
,
Heather H. Burris
4   Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Maternal and Child Health Research Center, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
6   Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
,
Eugenia South
1   Department of Emergency Medicine, Center for Emergency Care and Policy Research, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2   Urban Health Lab, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
5   Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania
› Author Affiliations Funding This study is funded by March of Dimes Prematurity Research Center, March of Dimes Foundation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Nursing Research (grant number R01NR014784).
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Abstract

Objective Urban neighborhood greenness is associated with greater cardiovascular health in the general population, and with better pregnancy and neonatal outcomes. Hypertension in pregnancy is a leading cause of maternal mortality and long-term cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in women. We sought to examine the association between greenness and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Study Design This study is a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study of 1,943 women who received prenatal care from December 2013 to December 2016 at a single, urban, and tertiary academic medical center in Philadelphia, PA. Greenness measure was quantified via residential tree canopy cover within circumferential buffers of 100- and 500-meter radii around participants' homes. Associations between greenness and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (defined as gestational hypertension or preeclampsia) were estimated by using multilevel logistic regression accounting for maternal sociodemographic information (race-ethnicity, insurance status, and age) medical history (diabetes, body mass index, smoking history, and parity), neighborhood deprivation index, and including 1,225 Philadelphia residents for whom key exposure and outcome data were available.

Results At baseline, the participants' mean (SD) age was 27.5 (5.9) years, (range: 14–44 years). The majority of participants were non-Hispanic Black (857, 70.2%). Participants with less residential tree canopy cover were significantly more likely to have hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. The multivariable-adjusted odds ratio of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy among participants with less than 10% compared with those with greater than 30% tree canopy cover was 2.14 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.11–4.15) within 100-meter buffer.

Conclusion In our cohort, greenness was associated with lower hypertensive disorders of pregnancy odds. Our findings add to evidence that greenness may confer health benefits and warrant further investigations in identifying whether there is a causal pathway through which greenness may be protective against hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Key Points

  • Low residential tree canopy is associated with increased risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy

  • 100-meter buffers are most sensitive in identifying associations between tree canopy and HDP risk

  • The role of greenness against hypertensive disorders of pregnancy should be further studied experimentally

Keywords

gestational hypertension - preeclampsia - tree canopy cover - greenness - maternal morbidity - environmental exposures - health disparities - environmental racism - urban health

Supplementary Material



Publication History

Received: 22 October 2020

Accepted: 28 June 2021

Article published online:
27 August 2021

© 2021. Thieme. All rights reserved.

Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc.
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