TOPLINE:

Children of parents with autoimmune diseases had higher odds of developing asthma and eczema, according to a meta-analysis. Exposure to maternal autoimmune diseases, especially systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), showed the strongest association.

METHODOLOGY:

• To examine associations between parental autoimmune diseases and the risk for allergic diseases in offspring, researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 12 studies: six prospective cohort studies, five case-control studies, and one cross-sectional study, with a median sample size of 1696 participants.
• The researchers focused on autoimmune diseases such as SLE, rheumatoid arthritis, and celiac disease in mothers and fathers.
• Allergic outcomes in children included asthma, eczema, and allergic rhinitis.

TAKEAWAY:

• In a pooled analysis of eight studies, mothers with autoimmune diseases were more likely to have children with asthma than were mothers without autoimmune disease (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.25; P = .001); the increased risk was greater among children exposed to maternal SLE (aOR, 1.40; P = .01).
• A pooled analysis of six studies found children exposed to maternal autoimmune diseases had a 30% increased risk for eczema (aOR, 1.30; P < .001), with maternal SLE associated with an 80% increased risk for the condition (aOR, 1.80; P = .03).
• Paternal autoimmune diseases were associated with increased risks for asthma (aOR, 1.16; P = .002) and eczema (aOR, 1.13; P = .02), but the effect sizes were smaller than for maternal associations.

IN PRACTICE:

“Beyond genetic factors, maternal chronic exposure to [autoimmune diseases] or [disease-related] immune modulatory medications and treatments, especially during pregnancy, may influence fetal immune development.…Further research is required to investigate the underlying causal pathways linking parental [autoimmune diseases] to allergic outcomes in children.”

SOURCE:

Tingting Zhu, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China, was the corresponding author of the study, which was published online on April 3, 2026, in Pediatric Allergy and Immunology.

LIMITATIONS:

The paternal results came from only three studies. Some allergic outcomes were captured via maternal report, whereas others were based on hospital or registry data. In adjusted analyses, unmeasured confounding or overadjustment could have affected the findings.

DISCLOSURES:

The authors declared having no competing interests.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.