Obstetric complications due to autoantibodies

Autoimmune diseases are most common and most active in young women; it is therefore not uncommon for obstetricians and physicians to encounter pregnant women with these conditions, and knowledge of the potential maternal, foetal and neonatal complications is essential for good clinical management. The most common maternal autoimmune endocrine conditions in pregnancy are insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and thyroid disease. Other relatively common non-endocrine autoimmune conditions include systemic lupus erythematosus and anti-phospholipid syndrome. Much rarer autoimmune conditions include autoimmune thrombocytopenia, rheumatoid arthritis, myasthenia gravis and Addison's disease. In this chapter, we discuss autoimmune endocrine conditions and briefly mention some non-endocrine conditions of particular importance.