"Gestational diabetes is usually screened using a test called as oral glucose challenge test between 6th and the 7th month that is about 24 to 26 weeks and when the patient books with us about 6 to 8 weeks the screening tests would be fasting blood sugars and HbA1c, that is glycosylated haemoglobin. This HbA1c indicates that her blood sugars for the past 3 months. So FBS combined with HbA1c will screen her for overt diabetes , that is if the diabetes was present in her before even she fell pregnant. Any fasting blood sugar below 90 and HbA1c below 6 indicates she was not diabetic before she fell pregnant. When we come to oral glucose challenge test that is done between 6th and the 7 th month that is about 24 to 26 weeks, the upper limit for the cut off is about 140 mg per decilitre. So any level above 140 mg per decilitre, indicates that she is having gestational diabetes"

"The screening test for gestational diabetes is oral glucose challenge test and here the way it is done is the patient can come nay time to the hospital, irrespective of the last meal, irrespective of the time of the last meal, irrespective of teh type of diet she has taken before, she will be given 75 grams of glucose. After taking 75 grams of glucose, her blood sugars will be tested after 2 hours and the cut off for this is 140 mg per decilitre. Anything above 140 mg per decilitre indicates gestational diabetes. The glucose challenge test is a very simple and easy test to detect gestational diabetes. It is a very simple tests as in the patient need not fast and the pregnant patients if they are kept fasting or a long time they keep on vomiting and the develop gastritis and they are not even able to withstand their hunger and after that if glucose is given they start vomiting. So this is a very patient friendly and one step method to detect gestational diabetes. Before there as a test called as glucose tolerance tests for pregnant patients, wherein the pregnant patients used to take low carbohydrate diet for 3 days, come to the lab on empty stomach, first give their blood for fasting blood sugar, the give 100 grams of glucose and thin the blood as drawn after the first hour, second hour and the third hour and in all these 3 hours they were not supposed to eat and drink this was a very cumbersome and most patient unfriendly tests but this oral glucose challenge test has become a very easy. Patient friendly, easy and reliable method"

Cloudnine expert, Dr. Poornima confirms Gestational Diabetes doesn't have any major impact on fetus growth or development. To know more, visit www.cloudninecare.com. #C9HealthTalk #CloudnineHospitals

Cloudnine expert, Dr. Poornima tells us about the two medications used to treat Gestational Diabetes. To know more, visit www.cloudninecare.com. #C9HealthTalk #CloudnineHospitals

Cloudnine expert, Dr. Poornima shares easy ways to control diabetes during pregnancy. To know more, visit www.cloudninecare.com. #C9HealthTalk #CloudnineHospitals

"Gestational diabetes will not have to be delivered early. It mainly depends upon the control of the sugars. If the sugars are well controlled and the sugar control does not require any oral hypoglycaemic agents and they are well controlled by just diet and exercises s the delivery can be done as late as 40 weeks. But if the gestational diabetes needs insulin or oral hypoglycaemic agents and the sugars are well under control then we can still wait up till about 38 or 39 weeks of gestation. On the other hand if gestational diabetes requiring insulin and oral hypoglycaemic agents and the sugar levels are not at all under control, then we may have to deliver them about 37 to 38 weeks of gestation and there is another particular segment of gestational diabetes we call as brittle diabetes, where irrespective of adequate exercises and adequate diet and maximum doses o f insulin or very high doses of insulin, sometimes patients requiring upto 100 to 120 units of insulin and still the sugars is not getting controlled at all, then these diabetic swill have to be delivered before 3 weeks, maybe 34 to 37 weeks. If macrosomia has set in. If baby’s weight is more than 4 kg and macrosimia has set in, it is an indication that diabetes is not under control, then we may have to deliver by 39 weeks, but macrosomia is along not an indication for induction of labor"