Essential Site Maintenance: Authorea-powered sites will be updated circa 15:00-17:00 Eastern on Tuesday 5 November.
There should be no interruption to normal services, but please contact us at [email protected] in case you face any issues.

loading page

Fetal and maternal outcomes after maternal biologic use during conception and pregnancy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
  • +4
  • Laura O'Byrne,
  • Safi Alqatari,
  • Gillian Maher,
  • Aoife O'Sullivan,
  • Ali Khashan,
  • Grainne Murphy,
  • Fergus Mccarthy
Laura O'Byrne

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

Author Profile
Safi Alqatari
Cork University Hospital
Author Profile
Gillian Maher
INFANT Centre
Author Profile
Aoife O'Sullivan
Cork University Hospital
Author Profile
Ali Khashan
University College Cork
Author Profile
Grainne Murphy
Cork University Hospital
Author Profile
Fergus Mccarthy
University College Cork and Kings College London
Author Profile

Abstract

Background: Biologic medications, specifically the TNF-α inhibitors, have become increasingly prevalent in the treatment of chronic inflammatory disease (CID) in pregnancy. Objective: To determine pregnancy outcomes in women with CID exposed to biologics during pregnancy. Search strategy: PubMed and EMBASE databases were searched through January 1998-July 2021. Selection criteria: Peer reviewed, English language cohort, case-control, cross-sectional studies, and case series which contained original data. Data collection and analysis: Two authors independently conducted data extraction and assessed study quality. A meta-analysis of proportions using a random-effects model was used to pool outcomes. Linear regression analysis was used to compare the mean of proportions of outcomes across exposure groups using the ‘treated’ group as the reference category. All studies were evaluated using an appropriate quality assessment tool described by McDonald et al. Main Results: 35 studies, 11172 pregnancies, were eligible for inclusion. Analysis showed pooled proportions for congenital malformations: treated 4%(95% CI 0.03-0.4) vs disease matched 4%(0.03-0.05).Preterm delivery treated 12%(0.10-0.14) vs disease matched 10%(0.09-0.12) Severe neonatal infection: treated 5%(0.03-0.07) vs disease matched 5%(0.02-0.07) Low birth weight: treated 10%(0.07-0.12) vs disease matched 8%(0.07-0.09) The pooled Miscarriage: treated 13%(0.10-0.15) vs disease matched 8%(0.04-0.11) Pre-eclampsia; treated 1%(0.01-0.02) vs disease matched 1%(0.00-0.01). No statistical differences in proportions were observed. Conclusion: We demonstrated comparable pregnancy outcomes in pregnancies exposed to biologics, disease matched controls and CID free pregnancies. Overall, women receiving biologics in pregnancy may be reassured regarding their safety.
29 Jul 2021Submitted to BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
04 Aug 2021Submission Checks Completed
04 Aug 2021Assigned to Editor
11 Aug 2021Reviewer(s) Assigned
23 Aug 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
12 Sep 2021Editorial Decision: Revise Major
20 Oct 20211st Revision Received
20 Oct 2021Submission Checks Completed
20 Oct 2021Assigned to Editor
20 Oct 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
04 Nov 2021Reviewer(s) Assigned
24 Nov 2021Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
26 Nov 20212nd Revision Received
27 Nov 2021Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
27 Nov 2021Submission Checks Completed
27 Nov 2021Assigned to Editor
01 Dec 2021Editorial Decision: Accept
Jul 2022Published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology volume 129 issue 8 on pages 1236-1246. 10.1111/1471-0528.17093