Prevalence of gestational diabetes and efficacy of risk factors in screening of referrals to health centers

Introduction: Gestational diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is a common disorder that without screening may remain undiagnosed. Screening for GDM is still a matter of dispute and there is no consensus as yet regarding the screening of GDM. Objective: Present study aimed to determine prevalence of GDM and assessment for risk factors in screening of pregnant women. Methods: In this cross sectional study medical records of 2014 pregnant women who referred to health centers of Esfahan in 2011 were examined. Samples were chosen by cluster sampling method. One hour GCT (Glucose Challenge test) was done for samples during 24-28 weeks of pregnancy through general screening and in cases of blood sugar higher than 140 mg/dl, gestational diabetes was confirmed by 100g OCTT (Glucose Tolerance Test). Data obtained was analyzed using Fisher exact test and multiple logistic regression and depended t. Results: From 2014 pregnant women who were screened, 77 were diagnosed with GDM. Therefore its prevalence was 3.8%. 332 cases (16.5) had no risk factors and only one case had GDM. Thus its prevalence in cases with less risk was 0.3%. Conclusion: In attention to high prevalence of GDM in overall study samples and its low prevalence in low risk women, selective screening based on risk factors can detect most cases of GDM.