Paternal inflammatory arthritis is associated with a higher risk of miscarriage: results of a large multicentre study (iFAME-Fertility)

Abstract

Objectives Paternal preconception health is recognized as an important contributor to pregnancy outcomes. Nonetheless, pregnancy outcomes of partners of men with inflammatory arthritis (IA) have never been studied. Our objective was to describe the pregnancy outcomes of partners of men diagnosed with IA. Methods We performed a multicentre cross-sectional retrospective study conducted in the Netherlands. Men with IA who were over 40 years old that reported at least one positive pregnancy test were included. To analyze the impact of IA on pregnancy outcomes, pregnancies were classified into two groups; pregnancies conceived after the diagnosis of IA and before the diagnosis of IA. Results In total 408 male participants diagnosed with IA reported 897 singleton pregnancies that resulted in 794 live births. Pregnancies conceived after the diagnosis of IA had higher rate of miscarriage (12.27 vs 7.53%, p = <0.05). This increased risk was still present after adjusting for confounders (OR 2.03 [95%CI 1.12–3.69], p= 0.015). Conclusions This is the largest study to describe the pregnancy outcomes of partners of men diagnosed with IA and the first to demonstrate that paternal IA is associated with a higher risk of miscarriage. Notwithstanding, the overall rate of miscarriage reported in our study could be comparable to previously reported population estimates.

Pregnancy Loss and the Risk of Myocardial Infarction, Stroke, and All‐Cause Mortality: A Nationwide Partner Comparison Cohort Study

“…Some authors have proposed a preceding factor, such as vascular pathology, immunological mechanism, or genetic risk variant, might increase the risk of both pregnancy loss and later disease. 1 , 2 , 8 , 11 Slight increases in risk of pregnancy loss have been found in both women and men with obesity or autoimmune disease 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ; thereby, pregnancy loss may be an early marker of later disease in both sexes. However, pregnancy loss may also be associated with changes in lifestyle factors that are tied to later disease.…”