ABSTRACT
Background The incidence of Crohn’s disease (CD) in women has been increasing over the past few decades.1 It is not clear whether this is due to improved diagnostic techniques, an increase in smoking habits in young women (patients with CD tend to be smokers compared with people without CD2) or other factors not yet identified. Because the diagnosis of CD or ulcerative colitis (UC) is often made in the childbearing years, fertility and pregnancy are important issues. Physicians involved in the care of these patients need to be prepared to offer effective pre-conception counselling to improve pregnancy outcomes in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aim of this chapter is to review some clinically relevant preconception issues in IBD.
