Volume 30, Issue 3 (September 2026)                   Physiol Pharmacol 2026, 30(3): 318-328 | Back to browse issues page

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Poursadeghfard M, Hooshmandi E, Bayat M, Kalaee M, Salehi A. Mode of delivery and postpartum clinical relapse in women with multiple sclerosis: a retrospective cohort study from southern iran. Physiol Pharmacol 2026; 30 (3) :318-328
URL: http://ppj.phypha.ir/article-1-2682-en.html
Mode of delivery and postpartum clinical relapse in women with multiple sclerosis: a retrospective cohort study from southern iran
Maryam Poursadeghfard , Etrat Hooshmandi , Mahnaz Bayat , Mahsa Kalaee , Alireza Salehi
Abstract:   (492 Views)

Introduction: Pregnancy-related disease activity in multiple sclerosis (MS) remains an important clinical concern. This study descriptively characterized postpartum relapses according to mode of delivery and described additional clinical, obstetric, and treatment-related characteristics.
Methods: This retrospective cohort study included women with MS who experienced pregnancy after MS diagnosis and were followed at a tertiary MS referral center in Southern Iran between 2024 and 2025. Postpartum relapse was defined as a new clinical relapse within three months after delivery. Because of the small number of relapse events and repeated pregnancies contributed by some women, analyses were restricted to descriptive statistics.
Results: A total of 83 pregnancy episodes from 26 women with MS were analyzed. Five postpartum clinical relapses (6%) occurred within three months after delivery. Relapses were observed across several delivery categories; however, the small number of events did not permit conclusions regarding an association between delivery mode and postpartum relapse. Deliveries followed by relapse showed higher mean EDSS scores and a greater descriptive frequency of some comorbidities, particularly hypothyroidism and diabetes mellitus. Pre-pregnancy disease-modifying therapy categories also showed different descriptive distributions between deliveries with and without relapse. No postpartum relapses occurred among deliveries associated with a relapse during the year before pregnancy or during pregnancy.
Conclusion: In this cohort, the descriptive distribution of postpartum relapse across delivery modes did not permit conclusions regarding an association. However, the limited number of relapse events warrants cautious interpretation, and larger prospective studies with standardized imaging follow-up are needed to evaluate these findings further.

Keywords: Multiple sclerosis, Pregnancy, Postpartum period, Recurrence, Parturition
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Type of Manuscript: Clinical research article | Subject: Neurophysiology/Pharmacology
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