Chronic hypertension in pregnancy: insights into adverse outcomes prevention.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of low molecular weight heparin in the prevention of preeclampsia and/or fetal growth restriction in pregnant women with chronic hypertension.

Methods: Women diagnosed with chronic hypertension were retrospectively selected from our electronic database from January 2019 to January 2024. The primary endpoint was the occurrence of adverse pregnancy outcomes described as the onset of preeclampsia and/or fetal growth restriction.

The impact of systemic sclerosis on women's health evaluated with an ad hoc-developed patient-reported questionnaire.

Objective: The impact of disease on women's health-related quality of life has become increasingly important in patients with rheumatic diseases (RDs). Systemic sclerosis (SSc) mostly affects women with a broad spectrum of clinical presentations and severity, and a variable impact on daily living. The objective of the present study was to specifically address "women's health" in systemic sclerosis patients through a dedicated questionnaire.

Stopping bDMARDs at the beginning of pregnancy is associated with disease flares and preterm delivery in women with rheumatoid arthritis.

Women with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) can experience flares during pregnancy that might influence pregnancy outcomes. We aimed at assessing the disease course during pregnancy and identifying risk factors for flares. Data about prospectively-followed pregnancies in RA were retrospectively collected before conception, during each trimester and in the post-partum period.

Reproductive Issues and Pregnancy Implications in Systemic Sclerosis.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a rare systemic autoimmune disease that can influence reproductive health. SSc has a strong female predominance, and the disease onset can occur during fertility age in almost 50% of patients. Preconception counseling, adjustment of treatment, and close surveillance during pregnancy by a multidisciplinary team, are key points to minimize fetal and maternal risks and favor successful pregnancy outcomes.

Disease course and obstetric outcomes of pregnancies in juvenile idiopathic arthritis: are there any differences among disease subtypes? A single-centre retrospective study of prospectively followed pregnancies in a dedicated pregnancy clinic.

To study disease activity during pregnancy and obstetric outcomes in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) upon different subsets and with focus on medication use. Retrospective observational study of 22 pregnancies in 16 JIA patients (95.5% Caucasian) who were followed between 2010 and 2018.

Triple Antiphospholipid (aPL) Antibodies Positivity Is Associated With Pregnancy Complications in aPL Carriers: A Multicenter Study on 62 Pregnancies.

Antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) are risk factors for thrombosis and adverse pregnancy outcomes (APO). The management of the so called "aPL carriers" (subjects with aPL positivity without the clinical criteria manifestations of APS) is still undefined. This study aims at retrospectively evaluating the outcomes and the factors associated with APO and maternal complications in 62 pregnant aPL carriers.

A comprehensive review of the clinical approach to pregnancy and systemic lupus erythematosus.

Nowadays, most of the young women affected by Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) can carry out one or more pregnancies thanks to the improvement in treatment and the consequent reduction in morbidity and mortality. Pregnancy outcome in these women has also greatly improved in the last decades. A correct timing for pregnancy (tailored on disease activity and established during a preconception counselling), together with a tight monitoring during the three trimesters and the post-partum period (to timely identify and treat possible obstetric complications or maternal disease flares), as well as the concept of multidisciplinary management, are currently milestones of the management of pregnancy in SLE patients.

The Efficacy and Safety of Cyclosporin A in Pregnant Patients with Systemic Autoimmune Diseases.

Problem: Cyclosporin A (CYS A) is an immunosuppressant agent administered in autoimmune diseases, and its use during pregnancy and lactation is a debated topic.

Method Of Study: The demographic characteristics, the activity of the underlying disease, and the onset of fetal-maternal complications have been investigated in 21 consecutive patients (2 RA, 14 SLE, 2 PA, 1 SjS, 1 DM, 1 Churg-Strauss vasculitis), treated with CYS A throughout 29 gestations. A subanalysis of the SLE group was performed.

Risk identification of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women by a simple algorithm based on ultrasound densitometry and body mass index.

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) method is the main device for diagnosing osteoporosis; this method, however, involves the use of expensive equipment. Ultrasound method, being portable, noninvasive, and cost-effective, seems to be an appropriate screening device to identify subjects at risk of osteoporosis. Two hundred and twenty-four postmenopausal women (mean age: 57.

Relationships between circulating hormone levels, mammographic percent density and breast cancer risk factors in postmenopausal women.

Background: Endogenous hormones and insulin-like growth factors (IGF) play a central role in breast cancer development. Mammographic density, an important breast cancer risk factor, has been associated with these biomarkers in premenopausal women. The aim of this study was to assess the relationships between circulating hormones, clinical features related to breast cancer risk and mammographic density in postmenopausal women.

Quality of life assessment in a chemoprevention trial: fenretinide and oral or transdermal HRT.

Background: Oral conjugated equine estrogen (CEE) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) relief menopause symptoms, but may increase breast cancer risk, while the effects of transdermal estradiol (E2) and MPA are less known. In previous studies, fenretinide decreased second breast malignancies in premenopausal but not in postmenopausal women, suggesting a hormone-sensitizing effect. We have evaluated the quality of life through a self-administered questionnaire during a randomized study of oral CEE or transdermal E2 and fenretinide or placebo.

A two-by-two factorial trial comparing oral with transdermal estrogen therapy and fenretinide with placebo on breast cancer biomarkers.

Purpose: Oral conjugated equine estrogen (CEE) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) increase breast cancer risk, whereas the effect of transdermal estradiol (E2) and MPA is less known. Fenretinide may decrease second breast malignancies in premenopausal women but not in postmenopausal women, suggesting a hormone-sensitizing effect. We compared the 6 and 12-month changes in insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), IGF-binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3), IGF-I:IGFBP-3 ratio, sex-hormone binding-globulin, and computerized mammographic percent density during oral CEE or transdermal E2 with sequential MPA and fenretinide or placebo.

Endometrial evaluation with transvaginal ultrasound during hormone therapy: a prospective multicenter study.

Objective: To assess the value of endometrial thickness as a marker of endometrial abnormality risk during hormone therapy (HT) and to study the correlation between abnormal bleeding and abnormal endometrial histology in patients with thick endometrium.

Design: Prospective multicenter study.

Setting: University and general hospitals outpatient centers.

Effect of transdermal estradiol and oral conjugated estrogen on C-reactive protein in retinoid-placebo trial in healthy women.

Background: The increase in C-reactive protein (CRP) during oral conjugated equine estrogen (CEE) may explain the initial excess of cardiovascular disease observed in clinical studies. Because the effect of transdermal estradiol (E2) on CRP is unclear, we compared CRP changes after 6 and 12 months of transdermal E2 and oral CEE in a randomized 2x2 retinoid-placebo trial.

Methods And Results: A total of 189 postmenopausal women were randomized to 50 microg/d transdermal E2 and 100 mg BID of the retinoid fenretinide (n=45), 50 microg/d transdermal E2 and placebo (n=49), 0.