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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Effects of Pregnancy on Liver and Kidney Cyst Growth Rates in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease: A Pilot Study

by
Vahid Bazojoo
1,
Vahid Davoudi
1,
Jon D. Blumenfeld
2,3,
Chenglin Zhu
1,
Line Malha
2,
Grace C. Lo
1,
James M. Chevalier
2,3,
Daniil Shimonov
2,3,
Arman Sharbatdaran
1,
Hreedi Dev
1,
Syed I. Raza
4,
Zhongxiu Hu
1,
Xinzi He
1,
Arindam RoyChoudhury
5 and
Martin R. Prince
1,*
1
Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10022, USA
2
Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology and Hypertension, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY 10021, USA
3
The Rogosin Institute, New York, NY 10021, USA
4
Department of Internal Medicine, Detroit Medical Center, Detroit, MI 48201, USA
5
Division of Biostatistics, Department of Population Health Sciences, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10065, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
J. Clin. Med. 2025, 14(11), 3688; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14113688 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 1 April 2025 / Revised: 19 May 2025 / Accepted: 21 May 2025 / Published: 24 May 2025
(This article belongs to the Section Obstetrics & Gynecology)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Abstract: Background/Objectives: Polycystic liver disease (PLD) is the most common extrarenal manifestation of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). PLD is more prevalent in women, and women have larger liver cysts, possibly due to estrogen-related mechanisms. Maternal estrogen levels normally increase during pregnancy. Thus, we investigated the pregnancy-associated increase in liver volume, liver cyst volume, total kidney volume (TKV), and kidney cyst growth rates in ADPKD patients. Methods: Kidney, liver, and cyst volumes were measured in 16 ADPKD patients by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at multiple timepoints before and after pregnancy. The log-transformed TKV, liver volume, and cyst volume growth rates during a period with pregnancy were compared to a period without pregnancy. Results: In ADPKD patients, a higher annualized liver cyst growth rate was observed during a period with pregnancy compared to a period without pregnancy (34 ± 16%/yr vs. 23 ± 17%/yr; p-value = 0.005). Liver volume growth was also higher during a period with pregnancy, 6 [2, 7]%/yr vs. 0.3 [−0.4, 2]%/yr (p-value = 0.04). In addition, the mean kidney cyst growth rate was higher (12 ± 11%/yr vs. 4 ± 9%/yr; p-value = 0.05), and there was a trend toward a pregnancy-associated increase in the TKV growth rate (6 [4, 8]%/yr vs. 3 [0.8, 5]%/yr, (p-value = 0.14) during a period with pregnancy. Conclusions: In patients with ADPKD, the liver volume and cyst volume growth rates increased during pregnancy. This supports the hypothesis that the estrogen-mediated stimulation of liver cyst growth may contribute to the severe polycystic liver disease that is more prevalent in women than men with ADPKD. Further studies with larger populations are needed to explore the mechanisms and long-term implications of these findings.
Keywords: ADPKD; pregnancy; liver; kidney; cysts; estrogen ADPKD; pregnancy; liver; kidney; cysts; estrogen

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MDPI and ACS Style

Bazojoo, V.; Davoudi, V.; Blumenfeld, J.D.; Zhu, C.; Malha, L.; Lo, G.C.; Chevalier, J.M.; Shimonov, D.; Sharbatdaran, A.; Dev, H.; et al. Effects of Pregnancy on Liver and Kidney Cyst Growth Rates in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease: A Pilot Study. J. Clin. Med. 2025, 14, 3688. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14113688

AMA Style

Bazojoo V, Davoudi V, Blumenfeld JD, Zhu C, Malha L, Lo GC, Chevalier JM, Shimonov D, Sharbatdaran A, Dev H, et al. Effects of Pregnancy on Liver and Kidney Cyst Growth Rates in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease: A Pilot Study. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2025; 14(11):3688. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14113688

Chicago/Turabian Style

Bazojoo, Vahid, Vahid Davoudi, Jon D. Blumenfeld, Chenglin Zhu, Line Malha, Grace C. Lo, James M. Chevalier, Daniil Shimonov, Arman Sharbatdaran, Hreedi Dev, and et al. 2025. "Effects of Pregnancy on Liver and Kidney Cyst Growth Rates in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease: A Pilot Study" Journal of Clinical Medicine 14, no. 11: 3688. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14113688

APA Style

Bazojoo, V., Davoudi, V., Blumenfeld, J. D., Zhu, C., Malha, L., Lo, G. C., Chevalier, J. M., Shimonov, D., Sharbatdaran, A., Dev, H., Raza, S. I., Hu, Z., He, X., RoyChoudhury, A., & Prince, M. R. (2025). Effects of Pregnancy on Liver and Kidney Cyst Growth Rates in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease: A Pilot Study. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 14(11), 3688. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14113688

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