# Examining the impact of solid organ transplantation on family planning: pre- and post-transplantation pregnancy evaluations for both women and men

## TL;DR

This study examines how organ transplantation affects pregnancy outcomes for both women and their partners, highlighting the need for early counseling and monitoring.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into pregnancy planning and outcomes for organ transplant recipients and their partners.

## Key findings

- Transplanted women experience more pregnancy complications despite careful planning.
- Partners of transplanted men, especially those with thoracic organs, have lower live birth rates.
- Spontaneous conception is less common among partners of male transplant recipients.

## Abstract

The aim of this study was to collect and analyze information from pregnancies of organ transplanted women and partners of organ transplanted men. The goal was to enhance counseling regarding pregnancy planning and management and to enable more targeted monitoring to improve maternal and child health.

In this retrospective, multicenter cohort study, women and men aged 18 to 45 who had undergone organ transplantation in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland were surveyed about their pregnancies before and after transplantation by using a self-developed questionnaire.

Even through transplanted women planned their pregnancies more carefully than before transplantation, they still experienced more pregnancy complications afterward. The live birth rate for pregnancies of partners of transplanted men, especially men who received a thoracic organ, was lower compared to before transplantation. Furthermore, this study showed that pregnancies of the partners of male transplant recipients occurred significantly less by spontaneous conception in comparison to pregnancies of transplanted women.

Pregnancies after organ transplantation are possible but associated with an increased risk of pregnancy complications. Therefore, early counseling for transplanted women and men who wish to have children, along with extensive monitoring during pregnancy, is necessary.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00404-024-07689-7.