Family planning, pregnancy and birth in women with lung conditions: a worldwide survey.

Lung diseases can complicate pregnancy, but little is known about the experiences of pregnancy among women living with such diseases. This survey aimed to understand the experiences of women with a lung condition before and during pregnancy, in childbirth and post-partum. The survey was translated into nine languages and hosted online between March and May 2018. This paper reports on 327 women who had asthma, cystic fibrosis (CF), lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) and sarcoidosis as a sole or primary lung condition. Women with CF and LAM were most likely to report that their condition influenced their decision to have children. Those with CF and LAM who did become pregnant reported greater satisfaction with their healthcare during pregnancy and gave more consideration to factors such as location and type of birth; they were also more concerned about the impact of the pregnancy on their health than women with other diseases. Women with sarcoidosis reported receiving conflicting advice as to both the impact of their condition on pregnancy and how becoming pregnant might impact their health. Women with asthma reported not always being able to access the information they needed from healthcare professionals. The results suggest that healthcare providers should be having dialogues with affected women early on, from before conception, throughout the pregnancy and after giving birth, and training should be provided to healthcare staff to equip them with the information they need to do this.

Understanding the priorities for women diagnosed with lymphangioleiomyomatosis: a patient perspective.

Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) is a rare lung disease that almost exclusively affects women and develops in about one in 400 000 adult females. The European Lung Foundation worked closely with one of the patient organisations within its network, the European LAM Federation, to raise awareness of LAM at the 2014 European Respiratory Society International Congress in Munich, Germany. In addition, an invitation-only workshop with 45 individuals from 13 countries was held to discuss the priorities for women in Europe living with the disease. The need for ongoing collaboration to improve knowledge of this rare lung condition with healthcare professionals across Europe was highlighted.