New study finds that pregnancy does not speed up progression in women with ADPKD
Since pregnancy is something that is understandably discussed a lot here:
There is a new study that looked at progression of ADPKD (decline in eGFR and increase in TKV) in women with one or multiple pregnancies. As you can see below, they did not find pregnancy to speed up progression in the cohort they looked at. Here is the link to the study: twp.ai/4hqnV2
It's important to note that this does not look at liver cysts which are known to increase with pregnancy (as well as estrogen used as a contraceptive or hormone replacement therapy). Also, individual cases can be different so of course it's always important to consult your nephrologist about your specific situation. At last, pregnancy can always pose a risk to kidney function, even in previously healthy individuals without any pre-existing kidney disease. With ADPKD and high blood pressure, we are more susceptible to some of these negative events, so close medical monitoring is crucial. But in general I think this is encouraging data for everyone with PKD thinking about getting pregnant (again).