Rheumatoid arthritis ‘increases risk of premature birth in pregnant women’

A new study of the Danish population has indicated that rheumatoid arthritis can increase a woman's risk of giving birth prematurely.

Assessing population trends among almost two million children, it was revealed that babies of women with diagnosed or preclinical cases of rheumatoid arthritis are 1.5 times more likely to be born prematurely.

Meanwhile, the body measurements of the baby at birth were shown to be lower in children exposed to maternal rheumatoid arthritis, although this reduction was only small. By contrast, paternal rheumatoid arthritis had no impact at all.

The researchers concluded that the long-term health effects for children born to mothers with rheumatoid arthritis is a field that requires further investigation.

Study leader Ane Rom, from Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark, said: "Obstetricians should be aware of the increased risk of preterm birth in women with RA and among those with preclinical signs of the disease."

Rheumatoid arthritis affects around 400,000 people in the UK and is most common in women between the ages of 40 and 50.