PREVALENCE OF GESTATIONAL DIABETES IN RURAL AREAS AND ITS ADVERSE EFFECTS ON PREGNANCY

Abstract

Background: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with adverse maternal and fetal outcomes arising rapidly. In a developing country like Pakistan, it poses a serious threat to mother and child health. The study focuses on educating women about health, maintaining a healthy diet during pregnancy, and the role of HbA1c estimation during GDM in determining maternal complications.

Method: A cohort retrospective study was conducted on women delivered at the Obstetrics Department of Sughra Shafi Hospital, Narowal, from January 2022 to December 2022. 305 women were diagnosed with GDM using fasting blood sugar levels and OGTT using the American Diabetes Association (ADA), 2015 criteria. Furthermore, HbA1c levels were estimated to correlate with maternal complications.

Results: Out of the 1240 women who gave birth at the institute hospital over the course of the year, 305 (24 %) had a diagnosis of GDM. When gestational diabetes first appeared, the mean fasting blood sugar was ≥140 mg/dl, the HbA1c was ≥ 6.0 mg/dl, and the average gestational age was 24.8±6.7 weeks. The Chi-square goodness-of-fit test in SPSS v23 was used to test each complication separately. P-values < 0.01 denote highly significant differences, suggesting that GDM women experience higher than anticipated rates of complications. 169 (55 %) and 109 (35 %) of the 305 GDM patients had PROM and polyhydramnios, respectively.

Conclusion: The study shows a high frequency of GDM (24.5%) in rural area women and this leads to increased risk of polyhydramnios (p-value= <0.01), preterm labor (p-value= <0.01), and cesarean deliveries (p-value= <0.01).