Optimizing maternal and neonatal outcomes through tight control management of inflammatory bowel disease during pregnancy: a pilot feasibility study

A home point-of care FCP test (IBDoc) and a self-reported clinical disease activity program (IBD Dashboard) may improve routine monitoring of IBD activity during pregnancy. We aimed to evaluate the feasibility of tight control management using remote monitoring in pregnant patients with IBD. Pregnant patients (< 20 weeks) with IBD were prospectively enrolled from Mount Sinai Hospital between 2019 and 2020. Patients completed the IBDoc and IBD Dashboard at three core time points. Disease activity was measured clinically using the Harvey–Bradshaw Index (mHBI) for CD and partial Mayo (pMayo) for UC, or objectively using FCP. A feasibility questionnaire was completed in the third trimester. Seventy-seven percent of patients (24 of 31) completed the IBDoc and IBD Dashboard at all core time points. Twenty-four patients completed the feasibility questionnaires. All survey respondents strongly preferred using the IBDoc over standard lab-based testing and would use the home kit in the future. Exploratory analysis identified discordance rates of more than 50% between clinical and objective disease activity. Tight control management using remote monitoring may be feasible among pregnant patients with IBD. A combination of both clinical scores and objective disease markers may better predict disease activity.