Issue 178 Item 2 Need for Postpartum Screening of Women With Gestational Diabete

Family physicians frequently fail to adequately screen women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).The results come from a small descriptive study. Adam Saperstein, MD, Naval Hospital Bremerton, Bremerton, Washington, United States, presented the study results October 3rd at the American Academy of Family Physicians 55th Annual Scientific Assembly.

He noted that gestational diabetes occurs in about 5% of pregnancies in the United States and "as many as 69% of women diagnosed with GDM are at risk for recurrence in subsequent pregnancies," he said. Additionally about half of the women diagnosed with GDM will develop type 2 diabetes.

Currently, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the American Diabetes Association recommend that women with GDM undergo postpartum screening for diabetes.

The study reported data from 29 women with GDM who were treated at a community military hospital. Ten women developed type A1 and 19 developed type A2, he said. All women were delivered between January 1 and December 31, 2001.

Thirty-five percent of the women never had postpartum screening for diabetes, he said, and among those who were screened, 15% had incomplete screening.

The results are "concerning since early intervention with these women could prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes as well as limit severity, which can offer cost savings in the long run," he said.

He concluded that family medicine training programs should emphasise the need for careful follow-up and postpartum screening among women with GDM.

The study results presented October 3rd at the American Academy of Family Physicians 55th Annual Scientific Assembly. [Study title: "Postpartum Evaluation of Patients with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus".]

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