Patterns of weight gain in pregnant women with and without gestational diabetes mellitus: An observational study

Objective To quantify late-pregnancy weight gain in women with and without gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and to determine factors associated with gestational weight gain. Study design A prospective clinical audit of 212 women (115 GDM and 97 non-GDM) who were weighed at each antenatal visit from 2432weeks gestation until delivery. Women received routine antenatal clinical care. For women with GDM, this included a 2-h lifestyle counselling session, capillary blood glucose testing and frequent clinical review. Results Women with GDM gained less weight than nondiabetic women (GDM: 1.18kg (1.6%) [range, 3.87.1kg]; non-GDM: 4.0kg (4.8%) [range, 0.718.5kg]; P<0.0001). Weight gain was influenced by body mass index and country of birth. Women with GDM showed reduced weight gain at weeks 14 postrecruitment, relative to weeks 48 (0.04kg/week vs 0.45kg/week; P<0.0001). Nondiabetic women gained weight at a constant rate. GDM status was the only independent predictor of postrecruitment weight gain. Conclusions Application of a model of care for GDM (lifestyle advice and regular clinical review, in addition to home glucose monitoring) may reduce weight gain in women with GDM. The potential for applying a modified version of this model to all women in pregnancy warrants further study.