Inflammatory bowel disease linked to adverse obstetric outcomes during pregnancy: Study

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory condition that can be further classified as Crohn's disease (CD), ulcerative colitis (UC) or IBD unclassified.The effect of inflammatory bowel disease on pregnancy‐related outcomes remains unknown.

The researchers conducted a study to determine the risk of adverse maternal, placental and obstetric outcomes in inflammatory bowel disease.

The researchers found that Pregnant women with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are more likely to undergo delivery by Caesarean section and face certain risks during pregnancy.Inflammatory bowel disease is therefore linked to adverse obstetric outcomes during pregnancy.

The study has been published in which is published in Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics.

The investigators searched Medline, Embase and Cochrane library through May 2019 for studies reporting adverse maternal, placental and obstetric outcomes in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) . Odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated for these outcomes in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) compared to healthy controls.

The analysis has found that one-third of all pregnancies in women with inflammatory bowel disease were delivered by Caesarean section, reflecting almost a two-fold increase compared with women without inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) .

The analysis also demonstrated increased risks of gestational diabetes and preterm prelabour rupture of membranes in women with IBD. Placental-related disorders, such as pre-eclampsia, placental abruption, and placenta previa, did not appear to be increased in women with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) .

The researchers concluded that Gestational diabetes and preterm prelabour rupture of membranes occurs more commonly in patients with IBD, although the incidence of placental diseases remains low.

Placental‐related disorders, such as pre‐eclampsia, placental abruption and placenta previa, do not appear to be increased in this patient population, although this remains to be confirmed in larger, prospective studies.