What does this research mean for the field?

Increasing ambient heat is associated with an escalating risk of adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes, with specific maximum temperature thresholds of 30.55 °C, 34.11 °C, and 39.07 °C corresponding to 5%, 10%, and 20% risk increases, respectively. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.SYNTHESIS. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To synthesize evidence on the impact of ambient heat on pregnancy and determine temperature thresholds linked to heightened risk of adverse maternal and birth outcomes.

August 22, 2026Nature Communications0 citationsOpen Access

Ambient Heat Thresholds for Adverse Maternal and Birth Outcomes

A systematic review and meta-analysis on heat thresholds for maternal health and birth outcomes

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

CHClara Heil LILeonidas G. Ioannou GAGünter Alce

Discussion

Member takes

Overview

Systematic review and meta-analysis reveals rising adverse pregnancy risks across ambient heat thresholds, highlighting climate vulnerabilities in maternal care.

Key Points

To synthesize evidence on the impact of ambient heat on pregnancy and determine temperature thresholds linked to heightened risk of adverse maternal and birth outcomes.
Systematic search of Medline, Web of Science, Scopus, GreenFile, and CINAHL up to June 2024 for peer-reviewed studies assessing ambient heat thresholds during pregnancy.
Assessed risk of bias using the Office of Health Assessment and Translation (OHAT) tool and performed random-effects meta-regression on 21 studies (N=5,589,862) alongside narrative synthesis of 103 studies (N=41,951,950).
Meta-regression identified maximum temperature (Tmax) thresholds of 30.55 °C, 34.11 °C, and 39.07 °C for 5%, 10%, and 20% increases in the risk of adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes.
Narrative synthesis highlighted significant methodological variability, exposure metric differences, and an absence of standardized comprehensive heat stress indices across studies.

Cite This Study

Heil et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a895fc4ca7ade938187e904 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-76822-8

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

August 22, 2026Nature Communications0 citationsOpen Access

Ambient Heat Thresholds for Adverse Maternal and Birth Outcomes

A systematic review and meta-analysis on heat thresholds for maternal health and birth outcomes

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

CHClara Heil LILeonidas G. Ioannou GAGünter Alce

Discussion

Member takes

Overview

Systematic review and meta-analysis reveals rising adverse pregnancy risks across ambient heat thresholds, highlighting climate vulnerabilities in maternal care.

Key Points

To synthesize evidence on the impact of ambient heat on pregnancy and determine temperature thresholds linked to heightened risk of adverse maternal and birth outcomes.
Systematic search of Medline, Web of Science, Scopus, GreenFile, and CINAHL up to June 2024 for peer-reviewed studies assessing ambient heat thresholds during pregnancy.
Assessed risk of bias using the Office of Health Assessment and Translation (OHAT) tool and performed random-effects meta-regression on 21 studies (N=5,589,862) alongside narrative synthesis of 103 studies (N=41,951,950).
Meta-regression identified maximum temperature (Tmax) thresholds of 30.55 °C, 34.11 °C, and 39.07 °C for 5%, 10%, and 20% increases in the risk of adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes.
Narrative synthesis highlighted significant methodological variability, exposure metric differences, and an absence of standardized comprehensive heat stress indices across studies.

Cite This Study

Heil et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a895fc4ca7ade938187e904 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-76822-8

Also Consider

Synapse has enriched 4 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context:

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark