ENDO: Cases of Gestational Diabetes Increased During Pandemic

TUESDAY, June 20, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) increased as the pandemic wore on, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of The Endocrine Society, held from June 15 to 18 in Chicago.

Yoon Ji Jina Rhou, M.B.B.S., M.P.H., from the Reproduction and Perinatal Centre at the University of Sydney, and colleagues assessed the risk for GDM at three hospitals (28,207 pregnancies) across distinct COVID-19 exposure periods: pre-COVID-19 (January 2018 to January 2020), first year of COVID-19 (February 2020 to January 2021), and second year of COVID-19 (February 2021 to January 2022).

The researchers found that across exposure periods, there were increases in prepregnancy body mass index (25.5 kg/m², 25.7 kg/m², and 26.1 kg/m², respectively), the proportion of patients who were obese (17.5, 18.1, 20.7 percent, respectively), and the proportion of patients with other traditional risk factors for GDM, including South Asian ethnicity and prior history of GDM. Across pandemic exposure periods, the weekly rate of gestational weight gain and the proportion exceeding recommended GWG increased (64.3, 66.0, and 66.6 percent, respectively). Similarly, GDM diagnosis increased across exposure periods (21.2, 22.9, and 24.8 percent, respectively). When adjusting for maternal baseline characteristics and gestational weight gain, the second year of COVID-19 remained significantly associated with GDM (odds ratio, 1.17).

"Gestational diabetes appears to have become more common during the COVID-19 pandemic due to both changes in the population and changes related to the pandemic, which has significant short-term and long-term impact for mothers and their children worldwide," Rhou said in a statement

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