Introduction:

Gestational diabetes is the most frequent endocrine disease of pregnancy and generally appears when there are risk factors.

Objective:

To describe the risk factors for gestational diabetes.

Methods:

Cross-sectional and descriptive study of a database that included 242 women with gestational diabetes, treated at América Arias Gyneco-obstetric Hospital in Havana, in the period 2004-2006. Categorical (dichotomous) variables were analyzed, considered as risk factors for gestational diabetes: diabetes in a first-degree relative, age equal to or over 30 years, excessive pre-pregnancy weight, clinical history of gestational diabetes, fetal macrosomia and unexplained fetal death, pregnancy-related high blood pressure, and at-risk fasting blood glucose. Percentage analysis (determination of relative frequencies) was carried out.

Results:

The mean age was 29.2±5.3 years. The mean body mass index was 27.1±4.2 kg/m2. 96.69% had risk factors; 79.49% of these had more than one risk factor. The most frequent were at-risk fasting blood glucose (64.53%), age equal to or over 30 years (60.26%), and excessive pre-pregnancy weight (51.71%). There was a predominance in manifestation of combined risk factors; manifestation of one risk factor alone occurred only in at-risk fasting blood glucose (14.57%), diabetes in first-degree relative (8.43%), age equal to o over 30 years (7, 80%), and excessive pre-pregnancy weight (5.79%).

Conclusions:

The risk factors for gestational diabetes appeared in the majority of women with the disease, mainly in combination.

        · resumen en Español     · texto en Español     · Español ( pdf )