Table 1.
Pregnancy characteristics and outcomes
| All pregnancies | Pregnancy after IA diagnosis | Pregnancy before IA diagnosis | P-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total number of pregnancies | 897 | 220 | 677 | — |
| 1st pregnancy, n (%) | 408 (45.48) | 103 (46.82) | 305 (45.05) | P = 0.87 |
| Year of pregnancy, mean (s.d.) | 1990 (12.76) | 1996 (12.96) | 1989 (12.12) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| TTP, months (s.d.) | 5.35 (9.59) | 6.99 (11.79) | 4.83 (8.71) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Spontaneous pregnancies, n (%) | 854 (95.21) | 200 (90.91) | 654 (96.60) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Conceived by ART, n (%) | 43 (4.79) | 20 (9.09) | 23 (3.40) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Pregnancy duration, weeks (s.d.) | 38.31 (4.06) | 38.57 (3.22) | 38.23 (4.30) | P = 0.66 |
| Paternal demographic characteristics | ||||
| Paternal age at conception, mean (s.d.) | 31.31 (5.72) | 34.27 (6.08) | 30.49 (5.34) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Paternal age at conception >40 years, n (%) | 78 (8.70) | 53 (24.09) | 25 (3.69) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Paternal education higher than bachelor, n (%) | 363 (40.47) | 94 (42.73) | 269 (39.73) | P = 0.44 |
| Paternal preconception exposure a | ||||
| Paternal smoking exposure, n (%) | 344 (38.39) | 67 (30.59) | 277 (40.92) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Paternal alcohol exposure, n (%) | 613 (68.42) | 136 (62.10) | 447 (70.46) | P = 0.07 |
| Paternal medication exposure, n (%) | 150 (16.74) | 110 (50.23) | 40 (5.91) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Paternal diagnosis of IA | ||||
| Age at diagnosis IA, years (s.d.) | 42.99 (12.65) | 26.99 (7.85) | 47.59 (9.69) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Diagnosis RA, n (%) | 451 (50.28) | 82 (37.27) | 369 (54.51) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Diagnosis JIA, n (%) | 15 (1.67) | 15 (6.82) | 0 (0.00) | – |
| Diagnosis AS, n (%) | 181 (20.18) | 75 (34.09) | 106 (15.66) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Diagnosis PsA, n (%) | 286 (31.88) | 68 (30.91) | 218 (32.20) | P = 0.72 |
| Paternal fertility evaluation outcomes a | ||||
| Fertility evaluation, n (%) | 138 (15.38) | 57 (25.91) | 81 (11.96) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Low sperm quality, n (%) | 45 (5.02) | 20 (35.09) | 25 (30.85) | P = 0.60 |
| Maternal demographic characteristics | ||||
| Maternal age at conception, mean (s.d.) | 29.00 (5.00) | 30.69 (5.16) | 28.45 (4.83) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Maternal age at conception >40 years, n (%) | 10 (1.11) | 5 (2.27) | 5 (0.74) | P = 0.06 |
| Maternal preconceptiona and pregnancy exposure | ||||
| Maternal preconception smoking exposure, n (%) | 171 (19.08) | 32 (14.61) | 139 (20.53) | P = 0.06 |
| Maternal smoking exposure during pregnancy, n (%) | 58 (6.47) | 13 (5.94) | 45 (6.65) | P = 0.93 |
| Maternal alcohol exposure, n (%) | 329 (36.72) | 73 (33.33) | 256 (37.81) | P = 0.31 |
| Maternal alcohol exposure during pregnancy, n (%) | 53 (5.92) | 16 (7.31) | 37 (5.47) | P = 0.45 |
| Maternal fertility evaluation outcomes b | ||||
| Fertility evaluation, n (%) | 116 (12.93) | 40 (18.18) | 76 (11.23) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| P = 0.07 | ||||
| Female infertility secondary to known cause,bn (%) | 37 (31.90) | 19 (47.50) | 18 (57.89) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Female infertility secondary to unknown cause, n (%) | 11 (9.48) | 6 (15.00) | 5 (6.58) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Pregnancy outcomes | ||||
| Live births, n (%) | 794 (88.52) | 190 (86.36) | 604 (89.22) | P = 0.05 |
| Miscarriage, n (%) | 78 (8.70) | 27 (12.27) | 51 (7.53) | P ≤ 0.05 |
| Induced abortion, n (%) Medical indication Personal reasons |
25 (2.78) 5 (20.00) 20 (80.00) |
3 (1.36) 0 (0.00) 3 (100.00) |
22 (3.25) 5 (22.73) 17 (77.27) |
P = 0.13 |
| Stillbirths, n (%) | 6 (0.67) | 0 (0.00) | 6 (0.89) | P = 0.16 |
| Pregnancy outcomes related to maternal and neonatal morbidity c | ||||
| Pre-term birth, n (%) | 149 (16.61) | 31 (14.09) | 118 (17.43) | P = 0.24 |
| Hypertensive disorders (hypertension, pre/eclampsia), n (%) | 41 (4.57) | 8 (3.64) | 33 (4.87) | P = 0.45 |
| Gestational diabetes mellitus, n (%) | 11 (1.28) | 2 (0.94) | 9 (1.38) | P = 0.62 |
| Intrauterine growth restriction, n (%) | 12 (1.34) | 1 (0.45) | 11 (1.65) | P = 0.19 |
| Maternal anaemia, n (%) | 15 (1.67) | 6 (2.73) | 9 (1.33) | P = 0.16 |
a
3 months before conception.
b
Endometriosis, fallopian tube obstruction, polycystic ovary syndrome, uterine abnormality, early menopause.
c
Maternal and neonatal morbidity reported for pregnancies ≥ 16 weeks of gestation (n = 806).
ART: assisted reproductive technology; IA: inflammatory arthritis; TTP: time to pregnancy.