Introduction: Being aware of the nephro- and hepatotoxic effects of most immunosuppressants, assessing their potential effects on the health of the offspring is an important aspect of deliberate family planning after organ transplantation.
Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of immunosuppressive drugs used by pregnant women after kidney or liver transplantation on the lipid profile of their children.
Materials and methods: Ninety-one children born to mothers after kidney or liver transplantation (study group) and 91 children of healthy mothers from the control group (control group) were included in the study. Transplant donors received immunosuppressive treatment in monotherapy or combination regimens during pregnancy. The study compared lipidogram values including total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, and triglycerides. The lipidogram was analyzed depending on the following 3 most commonly used immunosuppressive regimens: study group 1: CI (calcineurin inhibitors); study group 2: CI + GCs (glucocorticosteroids); and study group 3: CI + GCs + AZA (azathioprine).
Results: There were no significant differences between study group and control group in mean total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, and triglyceride levels (P > .05). In each of the studied subgroups, at least 1 abnormal lipidogram fraction was noted. Frequency of these deviations in study group 1, study group 2, and study group 3 were 31%, 57%, and 26%, respectively. However, no statistically significant differences were found between these obtained results (P > .05).
Conclusions: Prenatal exposure to immunosuppressants taken by the mother after liver or kidney transplantation does not appear to significantly affect the occurrence of lipid disorders in these children.
Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier Inc.