Lupus & antiphospholipid syndrome
Pregnancy complications and birth outcomes in women with antiphospholipid antibodies: a Danish population-based cohort study
Authors' conclusion
In this population-based cohort of clinically tested women, absolute risks associated with aPL positivity were lower than those reported in APS referral cohorts.
Study context
- Population
- Pregnancies reaching GA10 in women with at least one aPL measurement before pregnancy, Central Denmark Region (2012–2023)
- Participants
- 2,961 pregnancies
- Exposure
- aPL-positive vs aPL-negative pregnancies
- aPL-positiven = 137
- Outcome
- Pregnancy complications, adverse birth outcomes and venous thromboembolism (VTE) by aPL status; APS-related outcomes per 2023 ACR/EULAR criteria
Methodological detailsgeneralized estimating equations
- Generalized estimating equations
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- Spontaneous abortion between GA10 + 0 and 15 + 6: not associated with positive aPL
- Unexplained fetal death before GA34 + 0: not associated with positive aPL
- Substantially fewer APS-related events than expected resulted in imprecise estimates
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | aPL-positive | aPL-negative | RR (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intrauterine growth restriction <GA34 | 2.9% | 1.0% | 3.00 (1.00–8.6) | |
| Late preterm birth | 14% | 6.4% | 2.28 (1.41–3.66) | |
| 0.10.31310Relative risk (log scale) |
| Outcome | Adjusted mean difference (%) (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|
| Deviation from expected birth weightGreater negative deviation in aPL-positive | −3.4 (−6.1--0.73) | |
| −10−505Difference, % (linear scale) |
aPL-negative women vs general population
- aPL-negative women also had elevated risks compared with the general population
Safety
| Outcome | aPL-positive | aPL-negative | RR (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VTE | 1.5% | 0.3% | 5.4 (1.14–26.0) | |
| 0.050.21520Relative risk (log scale) |
Original publication
Pregnancy complications and birth outcomes in women with antiphospholipid antibodies: a Danish population-based cohort study. Rheumatology (Oxford). Published 6 August 2026. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →