Medical and Obstetric Complications in Women with Rheumatic Diseases

Many medical and obstetric complications may be encountered in pregnant patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases (AIRDs). In this context, it is important to understand basic obstetric terminology and definitions that aid risk stratification and consider pregnancy loss and its many causes. It is essential to managing some common medical comorbidities adequately, such as deranged liver function tests in pregnancy, autoimmune thyroid disease, which may overlap with AIRDs in pregnancy. Interpretation of lab results in the context of pregnancy physiology is critical to appropriately guide the management. Hypertensive disease in pregnancy is a common problem; therefore, diagnosing and managing it adequately is important. In the context of systemic lupus erythematosus, long-term complications of accelerated cardiovascular disease are another area expanding interest.