Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 12, 2026
Assessment of Maternal Vascular Remodeling During Pregnancy in the Mouse Uterus
Published on: December 5, 2015
Views on pregnancy and related concerns among women with systemic lupus erythematosus: A cross-sectional study
Dionysia Mandilara1, Spyridon Katechis1, Konstantinos Drougkas1
1Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology Unit, Attikon University Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
ObjectivesTo explore pregnancy-related concerns among women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and impact of the disease on desired family size.MethodCross-sectional, single-center study, including women with SLE diagnosed before menopause. Data were collected via questionnaires and medical records. Participants were classified into three groups: (i) those who never conceived (Group 1); (ii) those who had conceived before SLE diagnosis (Group 2), and (iii) those who had conceived at least once after disease diagnosis (Group 3). Continuous variables were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis with Mann-Whitney U post-hoc tests; categorical variables using Chi-square or Fisher's exact tests.Results152 patients were included and 75% had received information from their treating physician on reproductive health. Most common pregnancy-related concerns were the need to receive medication during pregnancy (56.6%), followed by concerns about pregnancy complications (53.9%). Women in Group 1 were younger and mainly attributed not having children to personal choice and not to SLE (56.4%). In contrast, women in Groups 2 and 3 frequently reported having fewer children than desired (35.3% and 44.6%, respectively), mostly due to SLE-related concerns (83.3% and 86.2%, respectively). In Group 3, deviation from desired family size was smaller among women who conceived in more recent periods (2015-2024, 32%), although attribution of deviations to SLE remained high.ConclusionsSLE affects women's reproductive decisions, underscoring the importance of tailored counseling.
ObjectivesTo explore pregnancy-related concerns among women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and impact of the disease on desired family size.MethodCross-sectional, single-center study, including women with SLE diagnosed before menopause. Data were collected via questionnaires and medical records. Participants were classified into three groups: (i) those who never conceived (Group 1); (ii) those who had conceived before SLE diagnosis (Group 2), and (iii) those who had conceived at least once after disease diagnosis (Group 3). Continuous variables were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis with Mann-Whitney U post-hoc tests; categorical variables using Chi-square or Fisher's exact tests.Results152 patients were included and 75% had received information from their treating physician on reproductive health. Most common pregnancy-related concerns were the need to receive medication during pregnancy (56.6%), followed by concerns about pregnancy complications (53.9%). Women in Group 1 were younger and mainly attributed not having children to personal choice and not to SLE (56.4%). In contrast, women in Groups 2 and 3 frequently reported having fewer children than desired (35.3% and 44.6%, respectively), mostly due to SLE-related concerns (83.3% and 86.2%, respectively). In Group 3, deviation from desired family size was smaller among women who conceived in more recent periods (2015-2024, 32%), although attribution of deviations to SLE remained high.ConclusionsSLE affects women's reproductive decisions, underscoring the importance of tailored counseling.
