Anti-Müllerian Hormone Serum Levels as Biomarker of Ovarian Reserve in Adult Women with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Treated with csDMARDs and/or bDMARDs: A Pilot Study
Background/Objectives: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a chronic childhood disease that often persists into the reproductive years. JIA may impact long-term fertility due to the prolonged exposure to immunosuppressive therapies. Methods: A total of 35 adult JIA female patients of childbearing age and 20 age-matched healthy controls were studied to test their anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) serum levels as a biomarker of ovarian reserve. Demographic characteristics, disease duration, previous and current treatments, disease activity (DAS44), and a health assessment questionnaire (HAQ) were recorded. Results: JIA patients had a mean age of 22.3 ± 2.9 years, a disease duration of 12.3 ± 6.1 years, and a DAS44 of 1.24 ± 0.61. No differences were found in AMH serum levels between JIA and controls (5.78 ± 2.37 ng/mL vs. 6.60 ± 2.68 ng/mL, respectively; p = 0.17). Among the patients, 22 (62.9%) were receiving a stable dose of methotrexate (MTX) and 19 (54.3%) a dose of TNFα inhibitors. No difference in AMH serum levels was observed between JIA patients who were or were not exposed to MTX (p = 0.29) or to TNFα inhibitors (p = 0.50). Conclusions: Ovarian reserve as assessed by AMH serum levels appears to be comparable between those with JIA and age-matched controls and does not appear to be influenced by disease characteristics or prior/concomitant exposure to immunosuppressive drugs.
Authors
- Maria Rita Gigante (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9509-1977)
- Stefano Alivernini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7383-4212)
- Clara Di Mario (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9459-3326)
- Barbara Tolusso (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9108-6609)
- Luca Petricca (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3544-3162)
- Elisa Gremese (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2248-1058)
- Antonio Bianchi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4896-5499)
- Antonella Barini
- Angelina Barini
Institutions
- Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (IT)
- Agostino Gemelli University Polyclinic (IT)
- Istituti di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IT)
Publication Details
- Journal
- BioChem
- Published
- 2024-10-18
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/biochem4040016
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Reproductive System and Pregnancy
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.24