Even as a small group of women in cardiology, we have collectively experienced infertility, miscarriage, stillbirth, low birth weight, preterm birth, and other pregnancy-related complications that affected both our health and the health of our children. Our experiences are unfortunately common among our peers. Prior research has shown that clinical surgical trainees are at increased risk of both infertility/subfertility and pregnancy-related complications.¹ Yet, delaying pregnancy until after training confers its own risks, due to both age-related fertility decline and increased risk of complications with older maternal age.

In this issue, Haghigat et al² provide another sobering data point regarding the high prevalence of adverse pregnancy outcomes among clinical trainees. Among 57 cardiologists who had at least one pregnancy during training, 40% had a pregnancy-related complication including miscarriage, low-birth-weight preterm delivery, and other complications. The current data derived from survey responses have several limitations, including small numbers and the potential for participation bias. However, the absolute burden represented by the numerator should raise important questions regarding what can be done to better support the health of trainees who are pregnant or intending pregnancy.