general population due to relationship difficulties, body image problems, fear of pregnancy and inappropriate medical advice that pregnancy might be dangerous [1][2][3] . Pregnancy planning should be discussed with the patient and her partner early on prior to conception. Education and open communication are important as patients may be reluctant to broach this topic on their own. Patient concerns often relate to fertility, impact of IBD on pregnancy and fetal development, and drug effects pre-conception, during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.
FERTILITYWomen with ulcerative colitis (UC) who have not undergone surgery or those with inactive Crohn's Disease (CD) have fertility rates comparable with the rest of the population. In comparison, women with UC who have had surgery [4] or those with active CD [5,6] have increased infertility. Fertility appears to revert to normal after induction of remission in women with CD. Women who have their first pregnancy after the onset of IBD have fewer pregnancies than population controls, whereas women who became pregnant prior to onset of IBD have similar reproductive history [5] . In addition, women with CD have a delayed age of first pregnancy after being diagnosed [7] and have been shown to have fewer children than might be expected after diagnosis with a higher rate of failure to conceive [8] .
IMPACT OF IBD ON PREGNANCY AND FETAL DEVELOPMENTT he initial impression looking at multiple, small observational studies of pregnancy in women with IBD was that the outcome was normal [6,9] . Fetal mortality risk (spontaneous abortion, stillbirth or neonatal death) is not higher for IBD patients [3] , but there is an increased risk of preterm delivery (< 37 wk) and low birth weight (< 2.5 kg) in mothers with IBD [10][11][12][13][14] . Still, the majority of women with IBD will have a normal outcome of pregnancy. Disease activity is the main adverse factor predisposing to prematurity and low birth weight babies [15] .
DISEASE ACTIVITYApproximately one-third of women with inactive IBD at conception will relapse during the pregnancy or puerperium.
Management of inflammatory bowel disease in the pregnant patient
AbstractInflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic disorder affecting young adults in their reproductive years. Many young women with IBD express concern about the effect their disease will have on fertility, pregnancy course and fetal development. This article presents an approach to management of IBD in the pregnant patient, including counseling and investigation, and summarizes existing data on the safety of medications used to treat IBD in pregnancy and breastfeeding.