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BACKGROUND: Uncontrolled inflammatory disease activity can impact pregnancy outcomes and the health of the mother and child. This retrospective claims database analysis assessed treatment patterns before, during, and after pregnancy among women with inflammatory rheumatic disease (IRD; axial spondyloarthritis [axSpA], psoriatic arthritis [PsA], and rheumatoid arthritis [RA]) or psoriasis (PSO) in Germany. METHODS: Data were extracted from the BARMER sickness fund (2013-2017). Pregnant women (18-45 years) with documented IRD or PSO diagnoses were compared with age-matched controls from the same database for the analysis of patient characteristics, healthcare resource utilization, and pharmacological treatment during pregnancy. Reported measures included the proportion of women with pharmacological prescriptions or hospitalization/new prescription of corticosteroids or biologics in the 180 days before pregnancy, during pregnancy, and 180 days after delivery. Pre-specified prescription categories (such as disease-specific drugs [not including biologics]) were identified by anatomical therapeutic chemical classification codes. Extrapolated values to the German statutory health insurance population are reported. RESULTS: Overall, 2702 pregnant women with IRD (axSpA: 1063; PsA: 660; RA: 979) and 6527 with PSO were identified. The proportion of women with IRD receiving prescriptions for disease-specific drugs reduced during pregnancy and remained stable after delivery (before: 15.0%; during: 9.0%; after: 9.7%). The proportion of women with PSO receiving prescriptions for disease-specific drugs was low (before: 0.6%; during: 0.3%; after: 0.1%). The proportion of women with hospitalization/new prescription of corticosteroids or biologics decreased during pregnancy, compared with pre-pregnancy, and increased after delivery in women with IRD (before: 9.0%; during: 5.1%; after: 11.1%) and PSO (before: 3.5%; during: 1.9%; after: 2.7%). CONCLUSIONS: A reduction in pharmacological treatment during pregnancy was observed for women with IRD in Germany. Many women with IRD did not return to pre-pregnancy treatments after delivery, despite signs of disease exacerbation, such as hospitalization and initiation of treatment with corticosteroids/biologics, in this period.
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INTRODUCTION: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and psoriasis (PSO) are chronic inflammatory diseases that have a substantial impact on patients' health. This retrospective database study aimed to assess the epidemiology, comorbidities, diagnosis and treatment patterns of RA, PsA and PSO in the German population. METHODS: Data were extracted from the Deutsche Forschungsdatenbank für Abrechnungsinformationen der Krankenversicherung database from 2012 to 2016 for patients aged ≥ 18 years holding full health coverage in the reporting year at least. Diagnoses were defined according to International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 codes. Reported outcomes included prevalence and incidence rates, pre-defined comorbidities, diagnosing and treating physicians, and treatment exposure. A subgroup analysis was performed for women of childbearing age (females aged 18-45 years). RESULTS: The prevalence rates of RA, PsA and PSO in Germany were consistent over the study period; by 2016 they were 0.4%, 0.3% and 2.1%, respectively, and in women of childbearing age they were 0.2%, 0.2% and 1.5%, respectively. RA, PsA and PSO were predominantly observed among patients aged > 45 years. RA and PsA were more prevalent in women, while PSO had an approximately equal gender distribution. Depressive episodes were the most frequently reported comorbidity in 2016 (RA: 25.7%; PsA: 25.1%; PSO: 17.8%), and this was similar in women of childbearing age (RA: 20.5%; PsA: 23.4%; PSO: 16.3%). Approximately 50% of patients with RA and PsA and 6% of patients with PSO were receiving systemic treatment in 2016, of which methotrexate (RA: 38.4%; PsA: 30.2%; PSO: 2.2%) was most common. Biologic therapies were the least frequently used treatment options (RA: 28.9%; PsA: 20.9%; PSO: 1.8%). CONCLUSIONS: This analysis provides key epidemiological information for patients with RA, PsA and PSO, including in women of childbearing age, in Germany and highlights common comorbidities and that patients were likely receiving insufficient treatment for these diagnoses.