19 Sep Rates of Gestational Diabetes Higher in Summer
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Anastasia Katsarou PhD
LUND University
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The study is using data from the Mamma study which screened pregnant women during 2003-2005. During this period, we gathered results from the oral glucose tolerance tests that the women underwent at the 28th week of pregnancy. We used data on the 2hour blood glucose levels from these tests and the frequency of women who were diagnosed with gestational diabetes and grouped them into months and seasons. We gathered also data on the mean monthly temperatures from the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute.
We observed that the 2hour glucose levels and the frequency of women diagnosed with gestational diabetes were statistically significantly higher during the summer months.
MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?
Response: It is difficult to draw any strong conclusions from the above findings, as our study had off course its limitations, such as access only to age of the women and data on mean monthly and not daily temperatures. Nevertheless, the above conclusions show that there may be an effect of temperature in the blood glucose concentrations and this needs to be investigated further in order to see if it is reproducible and if it is, we need to look more closely to the causes of this effect. In every day practice, the above findings will have more impact on the women that have glucose levels close to the diagnostic limits.
MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?
Response: The way the screening for gestational diabetes is done is an issue that is long debated and the routine tests vary significantly in different countries and even in different regions in the same country. There is a need not only to standardize the way we screen and diagnose women with gestational diabetes but also to further investigate whether other factors, such as temperature, time of the day and place of the screening tests may affect the results. Future studies need to be done on this matter in a higher scale but also to take under consideration other confounding factors, such as BMI, family history and maybe also the genetic profiles of women.
MedicalResearch.com: Thank you for your contribution to the MedicalResearch.com community.
Citation:
Seasonal pattern in the diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus in southern Sweden
Note: Content is Not intended as medical advice. Please consult your health care provider regarding your specific medical condition and questions.
More Medical Research Interviews on MedicalResearch.com
[wysija_form id=”5″]
Last Updated on September 19, 2016 by Marie Benz MD FAAD