title: Number of births, interpregnancy interval, and subsequent pregnancy rate after a diagnosis of inflammatory rheumatic disease in Norwegian women.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study female reproduction, i.e., number of births, subsequent pregnancy rate, and interpregnancy interval after diagnosis of inflammatory rheumatic disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a national population based cohort study, reproduction in mothers with rheumatic disease, registered with the Medical Birth Registry of Norway 1967-1995, were compared to mothers without such diagnoses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After diagnosis, women with rheumatic disease had a statistically significant lower mean number of births, a shorter time span of reproduction, longer interpregnancy intervals, and a reduced subsequent pregnancy rate.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Altered reproduction observed in women with a rheumatic disease might reflect various mechanisms not accounted for in this study, but possibly related to the disease process, functional impairment, or medical treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Center for Mothers with Rheumatic Disease, University Hospital of Trondheim, Norway. johan.skomsvoll@medisin.ntnu.no
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Skomsvoll
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ostensen
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Baste
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Irgens
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001721:Birth Intervals; D001723:Birth Rate; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009664:Norway / Q000453:epidemiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D018873:Pregnancy Rate; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012042:Registries; D012216:Rheumatic Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*