How long is long enough? Timing of pre-conceptional remission predicts relapse risk during pregnancy in IBD - Summary - MDSpire

How long is long enough? Timing of pre-conceptional remission predicts relapse risk during pregnancy in IBD

  • By

  • Dianne G Bouwknegt

  • Birgit Hoekstra

  • Hylke C Donker

  • Bram van Es

  • Henk Groen

  • Gerard Dijkstra

  • Willemijn A van Dop

  • Tjebbe Tauber

  • C Janneke van der Woude

  • Marijn C Visschedijk

  • Dutch Initiative on Crohn and Colitis (ICC)

  • Alexander Bodelier

  • Lauranne Derikx

  • Willemijn van Dop

  • Marjolijn Duijvestein

  • Noortje Festen

  • Herma Fidder

  • Rogier Goetgebuer

  • Carmen Horjus

  • Jeroen Jansen

  • Bindia Jharap

  • Vincent de Jonge

  • Mark Löwenberg

  • Nofel Mahmmod

  • Sander van der Marel

  • Wout Mares

  • Peter Mensink

  • Andrea van der Meulen

  • Zlatan Mujagic

  • Loes Nissen

  • Liekele Oostenburg

  • Marieke Pierik

  • Tessa Römkens

  • Fiona van Schaik

  • Xavier Smeets

  • Marijn Visschedijk

  • Michael van der Voorn

  • Philip Voorneveld

  • Annemarie de Vries

  • Rachel West

  • Egbert-Jan van der Wouden

  • October 13, 2025

  • 0 min

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Objective:

To determine how disease course before conception influences relapse risk during pregnancy in women with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), specifically focusing on the timing of pre-conceptional disease activity.

Key Findings:
  • Pre-conceptional flares <3 months before conception significantly increased relapse risk (aOR 5.289, 95% CI 2.6-10.8, P < .001).
  • Flares 3-6 months prior also increased relapse risk (aOR 2.910, 95% CI 1.0-8.2, P = .043).
  • Flares occurring 6-12 months prior did not significantly affect relapse risk (aOR 1.636, 95% CI 0.8-3.2, P = .146).
  • No significant interaction was found between pregnancy and pre-conceptional disease activity.
Interpretation:

This study indicates that achieving active disease remission at least 6 months before conception is critical for minimizing relapse risk during pregnancy in women with IBD.

Limitations:
  • The study is retrospective and may be subject to biases inherent in such designs.
  • Data extraction limitations due to reliance on electronic medical records.
  • Findings may not be generalizable to all populations of women with IBD.
Conclusion:

Achieving disease remission at least 6 months prior to conception is crucial for minimizing relapse risk during pregnancy in women with IBD.

Original Source(s)

How long is long enough? Timing of pre-conceptional remission predicts relapse risk during pregnancy in IBD

  • by Dianne G Bouwknegt, Birgit Hoekstra, Hylke C Donker, Bram van Es, Henk Groen, Gerard Dijkstra, Willemijn A van Dop, Tjebbe Tauber, C Janneke van der Woude, Marijn C Visschedijk, Dutch Initiative on Crohn and Colitis (ICC), Alexander Bodelier, Lauranne Derikx, Willemijn van Dop, Marjolijn Duijvestein, Noortje Festen, Herma Fidder, Rogier Goetgebuer, Carmen Horjus, Jeroen Jansen, Bindia Jharap, Vincent de Jonge, Mark Löwenberg, Nofel Mahmmod, Sander van der Marel, Wout Mares, Peter Mensink, Andrea van der Meulen, Zlatan Mujagic, Loes Nissen, Liekele Oostenburg, Marieke Pierik, Tessa Römkens, Fiona van Schaik, Xavier Smeets, Marijn Visschedijk, Michael van der Voorn, Philip Voorneveld, Annemarie de Vries, Rachel West, Egbert-Jan van der Wouden

  • October 13, 2025

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