Understanding the management of pregnancies with intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP)
Background
Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP – sometimes also known as obstetric cholestasis or OC), is a liver disorder that affects 1 in 200 pregnancies. It is associated with preterm labour, health problems for the baby in the womb and, in the worst cases, stillbirth.
For more information about ICP, go to www.icpsupport.org
What did the study find?
The study looked at the effects on the baby of having severe ICP during pregnancy. It found that women who had severe ICP were more likely to have a stillborn baby, to deliver their baby early or have a baby who needed support in the neonatal unit. Most of the women whose babies were stillborn had other pregnancy complications, so the results are not completely straightforward. But they are clear enough to show that women who have severe ICP in pregnancy need closer monitoring than women without it.
Who conducted the research?
This study was run through Wellbeing of Women, the charity arm of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG).
The project team, led by Professor Catherine Williamson at the Institute of Reproductive and Developmental Biology, Imperial College London.
Publications
The findings from this study have been published in the journal Hepatology.
Timings
This study took place from 2011-2014.
Sands funding awarded
£15,000