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. 2017 Oct;37(10):1082-1087.
doi: 10.1038/jp.2017.109. Epub 2017 Jul 27.

Autoimmune conditions and comorbid depression in pregnancy: examining the risk of preterm birth and preeclampsia

G Bandoli  1 , C D Chambers  1
Affiliations

Autoimmune conditions and comorbid depression in pregnancy: examining the risk of preterm birth and preeclampsia

G Bandoli et al. J Perinatol. 2017 Oct.

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine whether prenatal depression interacts with autoimmune conditions to further increase the risk of preterm birth or preeclampsia.

Study design: Our sample included 3034 pregnant women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), Crohn's disease (CD) or psoriasis, or controls that were prospectively enrolled into MothertoBaby pregnancy studies. We estimated the independent and joint effects of the three autoimmune conditions and depression on the select outcomes.

Results: We found an increased risk of preterm birth among women with RA (2.10; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.54, 2.87), CD (1.87; 95% CI 1.25, 2.81) or psoriasis (1.88; 95% CI 1.27, 2.79) independent of depression status. RA was also independently associated with preeclampsia. Prenatal depression was not independently associated with preterm birth or preeclampsia, nor was there any synergism with autoimmune conditions.

Conclusion: If these findings are confirmed, the absence of synergism should be encouraging news to the many women with select autoimmune conditions and depression in pregnancy.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest- the authors declare no conflicts of interest for this manuscript.

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