Rare autoimmune rheumatic illnesses during pregnancy: systemic sclerosis, polymyositis/dermatomyositis and vasculitis

Abstract

Autoimmune rheumatic diseases (ARD) affect young females during childbearing age. Over the last decades, improvements in survival as well as quality of life in patients affected with ARD have led to an increased number of pregnancies observed during the course of such diseases. Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the most frequently observed ARD during pregnancy, and the immunoendocrine changes occurring during pregnancy may influence the course of this disease. Pregnancy can also occur in patients with rare ARD, namely systemic sclerosis, polymyositis/dermatomyositis, systemic vasculitis including Wegener's granulomatosis, Churg-Strauss syndrome, polyarteritis nodosa, microscopic polyangiitis, Takayasu arteritis and Behçet disease. This review focuses on the complications during pregnancy caused by these rare ARD, and we briefly discuss the data published on these disorders. Some guidelines for the management of these conditions during pregnancy will also be provided. However, it is important to note that data on pregnancy outcome are very limited and, in the absence of prospective studies, most of the information derives from case reports and retrospective studies.