Medical emergencies in the patient with diabetes during pregnancy

Although the outcome of pregnancies complicated by diabetes is now approaching the success seen in the normal healthy pregnant population, this improvement is only realized when careful attention is paid to the metabolic, hemodynamic, and vascular perturbations associated with the changes of pregnancy. The diabetic woman must not only pay attention to nutrition but also blunt moment-to-moment swings in blood glucose by taking frequent does of insulin. In addition, she must be under constant surveillance for a host of other complications of pregnancy, such as hypertension, retinopathy, infection, acidosis, thyroid dysfunction, nephropathy, and sudden death in utero. Any or all of these problems become medical emergencies if left untreated. Rigorous vigilance to sustain normoglycemia and normotension, examination of the retina, culture of urine, assays for ketosis, measurements of thyroid function, and monitoring of renal function and fetal status are paramount in the management of pregnancy complicated by diabetes.