Prevalence of hyperglycaemia first detected during pregnancy and subsequent obstetric outcomes at St. Francis Hospital Nsambya

Abstract Background Women with hyperglycaemia detected during pregnancy are at greater risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes. Data on hyperglycaemia in pregnancy in sub-Saharan Africa is scanty and varied depending on the populations studied and the methodologies used to define hyperglycaemia in pregnancy. With the recent 2013 World Health Organisation (WHO) diagnostic criteria and classification, there is yet no sufficient data on the prevalence of hyperglycaemia in sub-Saharan Africa. The objective was to determine the prevalence of Hyperglycaemia first detected during pregnancy and subsequent obstetric outcomes among patients attending antenatal care (ANC) at St. Francis Hospital Nsambya. Methods A prospective cohort study. All women with no history of diabetes mellitus attending at or after 24 weeks gestation were eligible to participate in the study. Participants underwent a standard 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) after an informed written consent. The primary outcome was diagnosis of hyperglycaemia. Enrolled participants were followed up to delivery to assess obstetric outcomes (secondary outcomes were birth weight, neonatal admission, maternal genital trauma, delivery mode, neonatal and maternal status at discharge). Results 251 women were screened between December 2013 and February 2014. The prevalence of hyperglycaemia first detected in pregnancy was 31.9%. We found 23.8 % of women with hyperglycaemia had no known risk factor. Macrosomia was the only obstetric outcome that was significantly associated with hyperglycaemia. Conclusion The prevalence of hyperglycaemia first detected in pregnancy was high in the studied population. Clinicians, therefore, should become more vigilant to screen for the condition. Selective screening may miss 23.8% of pregnant women with hyperglycaemia. However the cost/benefit implications of screening strategy and the recent 2013 WHO diagnostic criteria need to be studied in our setting