A nationwide cohort study based on the Danish health registries shows that children born to mothers with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are more susceptible to developing RA and other chronic diseases compared with children born to women without RA. Children exposed to RA in utero were nearly three times more likely to develop RA (HR 2.89, 95% CI 2.06–4.05). The study additionally found that these children were also at an increased risk of developing thyroid diseases (HR 2.19, 95% CI 1.14–4.21) and epilepsy (HR 1.61, 95% CI 1.16–2.25).
References
Jølving, L. R. et al. Children born by women with rheumatoid arthritis have increased susceptibility for selected chronic diseases – a nationwide cohort study. Arthritis Care Res. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/acr.23461 (2017)
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Onuora, S. Higher disease risk in children of women with RA. Nat Rev Rheumatol 14, 62 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrrheum.2017.211
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrrheum.2017.211