Pregnant Women With Diabetes (Cont.)

 
Gestational Diabetes
Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that occurs in a pregnant woman who did not have diabetes prior to her pregnancy. Often, gestational diabetes can be controlled through eating a proper diet and exercising regularly, but sometimes a woman with gestational diabetes must also take insulin shots. Usually, gestational diabetes goes away after the pregnancy, but sometimes it doesn't. Also, many women who have had gestational diabetes develop type 2 diabetes later in life.
 

Pregnant Women With Diabetes Type 1 or Type 2: Effect on the Mother

Pregnant women with diabetes often experience fluctuations in blood glucose levels that sometimes occur very quickly.
 
If pregnant women with diabetes do not keep good control of blood sugar, they might experience some of the common problems of diabetes, or those problems might get worse if they already have them.
 
These problems include:
 
Other problems pregnant women with diabetes (type 1 or type 2) may experience include:
 
  • Miscarriage
  • Preterm labor
  • Large baby.
     
Miscarriage
Out-of-control blood sugar in pregnant women with diabetes could lead to a miscarriage. Out-of-control blood sugar might also cause high blood pressure in a woman during pregnancy, and she will need extra visits to the doctor. High blood pressure during pregnancy (preeclampsia) might lead to a baby being born early and also could cause seizures or a stroke (a blood clot in the brain that can lead to brain damage) in the woman during labor and delivery.
(Pregnant Women With Diabetes Continued: Page 3)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD