Gestational diabetes: Linking epidemiology, excessive gestational weight gain, adverse pregnancy outcomes, and future metabolic syndrome

Gestational diabetes (GDM) affects up to 200,000 deliveries in the United States each year. With the growing obesity epidemic, delayed childbearing, and multiple gestations, the diagnosis of GDM is expected to continue to rise. GDM unmasks a beta-cell defect that persists after pregnancy and typically worsens over time imparting the increased risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus after the index pregnancy. In addition, coexisting obesity and progressive weight gain are additive factors for progression to type 2 DM. Obstetricians play an integral role in informing GDM women about their lifelong risk of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and can help bridge the care to primary care physicians, as it relates to recommended screening and long-term follow-up.