New research has highlighted how higher blood sugar levels in pregnant women when they are first diagnosed as having gestational diabetes is linked to a greater risk of complications around birth and after the baby is born.
The study, from the Tâmega e Sousa Hospital Center in Portugal, showed that for every 5mg/L above the threshold for gestational diabetes diagnosis, the risk of the newborn baby having low blood sugar levels or a large birth weight increases rises by 9% and 6%, respectively.
In addition, new mums have a 31% greater risk of diabetes following the birth.
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Co-lead researcher Dr Catarina Cidade-Rodrigues said: “While it is not surprising that high glucose levels are associated with these adverse outcomes in mothers and newborns, our study shows for the first time how much increase in risk there is with 5 mg/dL of increase in the mother’s blood glucose levels when first diagnosed with gestational diabetes.”
Globally, around 20 million pregnancies are affected by gestational diabetes. The condition is diagnosed when women experience raised blood sugar levels during pregnancy.
Gestational diabetes can increase the health risks for both mother and baby.
There is an increased risk that mothers develop type 2 diabetes and deliver large babies, while for babies, it increases their risk of injuries sustained during birth and developing obesity as they get older.
Dr Cidade-Rodrigues said: “The magnitude of elevated risk can be calculated with our measurements and, in practice, could be used to identify and stratify women at higher risk of developing these complications.
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“We now want to evaluate if there is a benefit in further stratifying these high-risk women with gestational diabetes, who will need to be more closely monitored and to whom pharmacological interventions can be carried out appropriately. This may help reduce complications during labour and in newborns and prevent future diabetes in these women.”
Pregnant women are diagnosed with gestational diabetes if their pre-meal blood glucose levels are above 92 mg/dL in the first trimester, or their two-hour oral post-meal glucose levels (OGTT) in the second trimester is above 153 mg/dL.
The research team examined data from just under 7,000 pregnant women aged between 30 and 37, who carried one child and received a diagnosis of gestational diabetes between 2012 and 2017.
