Glycemic Variability and Its Correlation with Large for Gestation-age Babies in Gestational Diabetic Pregnancies

Although glycemic variability (GV) has been shown to be associated with endothelial dysfunction in diabetes mellitus (DM), there is a dearth of literature on its correlation in gestational diabetic pregnancies.

To compare GV and 24-hour ambulatory glucose profile (AGP) in gestational diabetic pregnancies with and without large for gestation-age (LGA) babies.

It was a cross-sectional observational study. A total of 40 pregnant females between 19 and 35 years with gestational DM (GDM) controlled on pharmacotherapy fulfilling inclusion criteria were recruited. A flash glucose monitor (FGM) was used to record AGP between 32 and 36 weeks of gestation in these women. A total of 400 patient days with 38,400 glucose values in the study group were analyzed. Various glucose measures were compared between the GDM pregnancies with or without LGA babies.

The incidence of LGA was 15% in these pregnant women who were on pharmacotherapy and apparently controlled as evidenced by self-monitoring of blood sugar values. All the parameters of 24-hour AGP except dinner values were significantly high in the LGA group when compared with the non-LGA group [mean amplitude of glycemic excursion (MAGE) LGA vs non-LGA 74.58 ± 16.83 vs 49.86 ± 12.83 mg/dL, p = 0.002; standard deviation (SD) LGA vs non-LGA 30.19 ± 9.69 vs 20.10 ± 5.97 mg/dL, p = 0.001]. Variables of GV: MAGE and SD were significantly high in the LGA group (p < 0.001). Time below range (TBR) and time above range (TAR) were also significantly altered in the LGA group (p < 0.001).

High GV and time in the range are the important parameters that can be well correlated with LGA babies in gestational diabetic pregnancies on pharmacotherapy. An FGM is a good monitoring device to measure this parameter and can be used as an adjunct to modify measures to control the glucose values within range in these pregnancies.