Cases of diabetes develop earlier and are more severe in women who had the condition while pregnant, a study has suggested
The findings highlight the importance of “enhanced monitoring” for women with gestational diabetes (GD)
GD happens when women cannot produce enough insulin while pregnant, leading to high blood sugar
According to global health estimates from the World Health Organization and the International Diabetes Federation, GD affects approximately 14% of pregnancies worldwide – or about one in seven mothers – with rates continuing to rise globally
While the condition usually disappears after giving birth, patients face a higher risk of going on to develop type 2 diabetes
The study, led by experts in Denmark, looked at 173 women with previous GD and 2,692 who did not have the condition
The analysis found that women diagnosed with GD developed type 2 diabetes almost 13 years earlier on average when compared with women who did not have the condition while pregnant
Around four in 10 patients with previous GD were under the age of 40 when they developed type 2 diabetes
They were twice as likely to require insulin treatment within two years of diagnosis
“Women with a history of gestational diabetes in pregnancy are not only at substantially increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life, but also tend to experience disease onset more than a decade earlier compared to women without prior gestational diabetes,” the researchers said
“In addition, these women more frequently require insulin therapy at the time of diabetes diagnosis. This pattern suggests a more severe form of type 2 diabetes and an elevated risk of subsequent complications,” they added
“These findings underscore the importance of enhanced monitoring and follow-up strategies for women with a prior gestational diabetes diagnosis.”
The findings will be presented at the Annual Meeting of The European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Milan, Italy. – PA Media/dpa
