PROJECT ABSTRACT
The Safe Passage Study is the first prospective, observational, large-scale cohort study to investigate the
effect of prenatal exposure to alcohol, tobacco and drugs on the risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS),
stillbirth, and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). Participants were recruited from two sites in Cape Town,
South Africa, and five sites in the Northern Plains, United States, including two American Indian Reservations
between 2007 and 2015. In total, the study enrolled 10,088 women, 11,892 pregnancies, and 12,029 fetuses,
followed to 1-year post-delivery. Extensive longitudinal data have been collected during prenatal,
delivery/newborn, and postnatal stages. As such, the Safe Passage Study is an important resource for
researchers interested in prenatal exposures, child physiological and neurological development, and
pathological assessments of SIDS, stillbirth, and FASD. The Safe Passage Study was initiated prior to the NIH
data sharing mandate, thus funds were not available for preparation and archiving of a de-identified dataset. To
facilitate the use of this valuable resource, we propose to make publicly available the Safe Passage Study
datasets via NICHD Data and Specimen Hub (DASH). We will archive and document the existing datasets of
Safe Passage Study, which NICHD sponsored along with NIAAA and NIDCD. More specifically, we will 1.)
prepare and submit PASS self-reported and medical chart abstraction data, such as maternal and infant
characteristics, psychosocial and dietary information, and exposure assessments, to the DASH portal; and 2.)
prepare and submit PASS physiology and pathology data, such as autonomic, respiratory, and brain function in
the fetus and infant, pathology assessments from autopsy and placental evaluation, and neurologic assessments
of the infant to the DASH portal. We will perform data de-identification, create a variable dictionary, prepare
datasets and annotation files using the Data Preparation Tool, and submit the Safe Passage Study to NICHD
DASH. De-identified data sets produced with support from this grant will be available without restriction to
researchers with the exception of data collected on tribal lands, due to sharing restrictions negotiated at the
onset of the study. The shared datasets will enable secondary analysis by the scientific community interested in
the link between prenatal exposures and child development.