Kolstad KD, et al. - Pregnancy outcomes were evaluated in dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis (PM) patients compared with the general obstetric population. The researchers proposed that patients with inflammatory myopathies were at increased risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and longer length of hospitalization. In pregnant patients with DM or PM, vigilant monitoring of blood pressure was advisable.

Methods

• The researchers used the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) (1993–2007) to identify delivery-associated hospitalizations in women with DM or PM (DM/PM, n = 853).
• In this study, controls were from the general obstetric population delivery-associated hospitalizations matched to each case by year of delivery.
• Hospital length of stay (LOS), hypertensive disorders (HTN), premature rupture of membranes (PROM), intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), and cesarean delivery were included as pregnancy outcomes.
• They performed multivariate regression analyses using maternal age, race/ethnicity, and diabetes mellitus as covariates.

Results

• Patients with DM/PM had longer LOS compared to controls (p<0.001) in multivariate analysis.
• DM/PM was correlated with an increased risk of hypertensive disorders than controls (OR 2.90, 95% CI 2.00 to 4.22).
• No differences were observed in rates of PROM, IUGR, or cesarean section in patients with DM/PM compared with controls.
• Independent of a DM/PM diagnosis, African American race, older age, and diagnosis of diabetes increased the hospital LOS (p<0.001).
• Compared to controls, African American race and diabetes increased the risk of hypertensive disorders (OR 1.38 95% CI 1.19–1.60; OR 2.94 95% CI 2.04–4.23, respectively).