To assess pregnancy outcomes in an unselected Takayasu arteritis (TAK) cohort, and identify pregnancy-related concerns.
Consenting female patients with TAK were predominantly recruited from a population-based southeast Norway TAK cohort. Additional cases (n = 8) were recruited at Oslo University Hospital. Data on the number of pregnancies, births, and pregnancy outcomes before and after disease onset were retrieved from medical charts, patient questionnaires, and the Medical Birth Registry of Norway (MBRN). Data on pregnancy-related concerns were gathered from patient questionnaires.
Altogether, the 58 women in the TAK study cohort had been through 110 pregnancies, 73 (in 33 patients) before disease onset and 37 (in 23 patients) after onset. The frequencies of miscarriages, induced abortions, and maternal complications did not differ between pregnancies occurring before and after TAK onset. Pregnancy-related hypertension was seen in 4.2% of the patients, compared to 1.5% (P = 0.37) in the reference cohort from MBRN, and preeclampsia/eclampsia in 4.5% compared to 3% (P = 0.2). The mean gestational age at delivery in pregnancies after TAK onset was 37.5 weeks, compared to 39.5 weeks in the MBRN references (P < 0.001). Cesarean sections were more frequent in deliveries after TAK onset (42%) than in MRBN controls (11%) (P < 0.001). Pregnancy-related concerns were recorded in 80% of the TAK cohort, with 60% expressing concerns about passing the disease to offspring.
In this population-based TAK cohort, the maternal and fetal outcomes were favorable. This study reveals a high prevalence of pregnancy-related concerns in TAK patients.