PARE0024 AWARENESS ABOUT FAMILY PLANNING AND PREGNANCY EXPECTATION AMONG PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE OF THE SKIN OR JOINTS

Abstract

Background: Patients affected by chronic inflammatory diseases of the skin or joints (CIDs; including psoriasis [PSO], rheumatoid arthritis [RA], juvenile idiopathic arthritis [JIA], psoriatic arthritis [PsA], non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis [nr-axSpA; reported in the survey as 'axSpA'], or ankylosing spondylitis [AS]) may be challenged in their attempts to have children. A multinational survey conducted in Europe and the US, including 969 patients, revealed that most patients' concerns regarding family planning and pregnancy (FPP) were inadequately or inconsistently addressed.1 Objectives: To investigate the general level of information on FPP and the potential concerns among Danish patients with CIDs. Methods: An online survey to identify FPP issues was designed, and CID patients aged 18-50 years (yrs) were included. Respondents were recruited through patient organisations providing their members with a link to the questionnaire. In addition to demographics, information relating to time of diagnosis, treatments received, pregnancies, and course of disease were collected along with access to and concerns regarding FPP. Descriptive statistics were applied. Results: Eligible patients included 368 with rheumatological diagnoses (RA, PsA, JIA, nr-axSpA, or AS; 304 [83%] female, mean age: 40 yrs; 64 [17%] male, mean age: 42 yrs) and 95 with dermatological diagnoses (PSO or PsA; 64 [67%] female, mean age: 37 yrs; 31 [33%] male, mean age: 42 yrs). Among the rheumatic patients, 43% of females and 53% of males were currently receiving systemic treatment and 37% of females and 22% of males had received >3 different systemic treatments (other than painkillers and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs [NSAIDs]). Lack of access to FPP information was consistent across age groups, but higher in those with dermatological diagnoses (Table). In total, 68% of patients with rheumatological and 73% with dermatological diagnoses had biological children and among these 18% and 23% of patients, respectively, indicated their disease had affected how many children they had or planned to have. The most frequent concerns among patients with rheumatological diagnoses were the potential physical impact of a pregnancy, disease worsening, heredity and being able to take care of the child (19, 16, 16 and 13%, respectively), whilst disease worsening and heredity (12 and 16%, respectively) were the most frequent concerns in those with dermatological diagnoses. Many patients experienced disease worsening during or after pregnancy (rheumatologic diagnoses: 16% and 34%; dermatologic: 20% and 59%, respectively). Conclusion: Danish CID patients of reproductive age have concerns related both to their disease and to FPP, which affect their decisions around family planning. The majority of patients responding to this survey reported limited access to information about FPP, pointing to a need for healthcare professionals to provide standardised family planning information.