Introduction: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a lifelong, chronic inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract. IBD morbidity rate in Europe has been steadily growing for the last six decades. Women with IBD are often diagnosed during the childbearing years, which makes the influence of the disease on pregnancy and birth outcomes an important clinical issue.
Objectives: The aim of the study was to estimate the influence of the IBD process among pregnant women on maternal, fetal and neonatal parameters.
Material and methods: A retrospective analysis of data on patients suffering from IBD, diagnosed before pregnancy who were admitted to the Department of Perinatology and Gynecology Polish Mother's Memorial Hospital Research Institute for delivery between 2009-2013, was conducted. IBD was diagnosed in 10 cases. The control group consisted of 10 healthy pregnant women near delivery
Results: IBD activity status at conception in women receiving continuous mesalazine treatment does not correlate with gestational age, birth weight, Apgar score or maternal platelet count at delivery in comparison to controls. IBD patients under mesalazine management had lower: i) maternal body mass index and platelet count, ii) neonatal birth weight and Apgar score as compared to controls. However, no impact of IBD on the frequency of congenital anomalies was noted.
Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this has been the first study conducted among pregnant women with IBD in Poland. The analysis demonstrates that pharmacological treatment has a deteriorating influence on maternal weight gain in pregnancy as well as production and activity of platelets. Moreover, it diminishes fetal growth and worsens short-term neonatal condition. Further studies with larger sample size are necessary but the rarity of this complication limits the possibility of research therapeutic perspectives.