Vitamin D deficiency in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with an elevated risk of postpartum glucose intolerance, according to a study published in Endocrinology and Metabolism.
Vitamin D deficiency in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with an elevated risk of postpartum glucose intolerance, according to a study published in Endocrinology and Metabolism.
Researchers measured serum 25(OH)D levels mid-pregnancy in 348 Korean women with GDM diagnosed between August 2012 and October 2018. In addition, a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test was administered 6 to 12 weeks after delivery. Researchers classified Vitamin D deficiency as serum 25(OH)D <20 ng/mL.
The average age of women in the study was 33, while the average gestation period was 27.8 weeks. Of the 348 women included in the study, 267 (76.7%) were vitamin D deficient at baseline.
It has been documented that vitamin D deficiency is associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and metabolic syndrome; however, the causality of the association is unknown. GDM is defined as newly diagnosed unspecified diabetes (type 1 [T1D] or T2D) in the second or third trimester of pregnancy. The authors also note that vitamin D deficiency is common in pregnant women.
“Recently gathered evidence suggests that vitamin D deficiency in the first 2 trimesters of pregnancy increases the risk of insulin resistance and developing GDM,” the researchers said.
Women who were known to have had T1D or T2D prior to pregnancy were excluded from the study, as were individuals with thyroid disorders, twin pregnancy, and a history of taking vitamin D supplements during pregnancy.
The researchers found that vitamin D-deficient women exhibited higher prepregnancy body mass index (BMI), prepregnancy weight, midpregnancy weight, weight gain, blood pressure (systolic [SBP] and diastolic [DBP]), hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C), triglycerides, fasting insulin, and HOMA-β compared with individuals without a deficiency.
In addition, the prevalences of postpartum glucose intolerance and overt diabetes were 44.8% and 4.9%, respectively. “Women with vitamin D deficiency at midpregnancy had a higher prevalence of postpartum glucose intolerance than did those without vitamin D deficiency (48.7% vs 32.1%; P = .011),” the researchers said.
After adjusting for maternal age, prepregnancy BMI, weight gain, blood pressure (SBP and DBP), family history of diabetes, and season, the researchers found:
Due to the fact that in Korea, around 90% of women are not vitamin D sufficient, the researchers note these results are not generalizable across ethnic groups and large prospective studies are needed to confirm results.
However, “vitamin D deficiency at midpregnancy is associated with an elevated risk of postpartum glucose intolerance in women with GDM,” the researchers said.
Reference
Kim K, Park SW, Cho Y, et al. Vitamin D deficiency at mid-pregnancy is associated with a higher risk of postpartum glucose intolerance in women with gestational diabetes mellitus. Endocrinol Metab (Seoul). 2020;35(1):97-105. doi: 10.3803/EnM.2020.35.1.97.
Research Points to Potential MCIDs in Diabetes Distress Scale–17
November 29th 2023Researchers identified a value of at least 0.25 to be a minimal clinically important difference (MCID) in diabetes distress, and MCID values of 0.38 and 0.39 for emotional and interpersonal distress subscales and physician and regimen distress subscales, respectively.
Read More
How Can Employers Leverage the DPP to Improve Diabetes Rates?
February 15th 2022On this episode of Managed Care Cast, Jill Hutt, vice president of member services at the Greater Philadelphia Business Coalition on Health, explains the Coalition’s efforts to reduce diabetes rates through the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP).
Listen
Balancing Care Access and Fragmentation for Better Outcomes in Veterans With Diabetes
April 22nd 2021The authors of a study in the April 2021 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® discuss the possible reasons behind the link between care fragmentation and hospitalizations in veterans with diabetes, as well as potential opportunities to address disjointed care in the context of the widespread telehealth uptake seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Listen