Longitudinal study of prepregnancy cardiometabolic risk factors and subsequent risk of gestational diabetes mellitus

Erica P. Gunderson, Charles P. Quesenberry, David R. Jacobs, Juanran Feng, Cora E. Lewis, Stephen Sidney

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

69 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study examined prepregnancy cardiometabolic risk factors and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in subsequent pregnancies. The authors selected 1,164 women without diabetes before pregnancy who delivered 1,809 livebirths between 5 consecutive examinations from 1985 to 2006 in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study. The authors measured prepregnancy cardiometabolic risk factors and performed multivariate repeated-measures logistic regression to compute the odds of GDM adjusted for race, age, parity, birth order, and other covariates. Impaired fasting glucose (100-125 vs. <90 mg/dL), elevated fasting insulin (>15-20 and >20 vs. <10 μU/mL), and low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (<40 vs. >50 mg/dL) before pregnancy were directly associated with GDM: The odds ratios = 4.74 (95% confidence interval (CI): 2.14, 10.51) for fasting glucose, 2.19 (95% CI: 1.15, 4.17) for middle insulin levels and 2.36 (95% CI: 1.20, 4.63) for highest insulin levels, and 3.07 (95% CI: 1.62, 5.84) for low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol among women with a negative family history of diabetes; all P < 0.01. Among overweight women, 26.7% with 1 or more cardiometabolic risk factors developed GDM versus 7.4% with none. Metabolic impairment exists before GDM pregnancy in nondiabetic women. Interconceptual metabolic screening could be included in routine health assessments to identify high-risk women for GDM in a subsequent pregnancy and to potentially minimize fetal exposure to metabolic abnormalities that program future disease.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1131-1143
Number of pages13
JournalAmerican journal of epidemiology
Volume172
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 15 2010

Keywords

  • Cohort studies
  • diabetes
  • gestational
  • lipids
  • longitudinal studies
  • obesity
  • preconception care
  • pregnancy
  • risk factors

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