Prevalence of diabetes five years after having gestational diabetes during pregnancy — Croatian national study

AIMS: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of diabetes among women 5 years after having gestational diabetes during pregnancy. Also, we sought to determine whether women who develop diabetes after GD during pregnancy differ from women who do not develop diabetes after GD during pregnancy. ----- METHODS: This longitudinal study was performed using data from medical birth certificates and CroDiab diabetes registry. Women burdened with gestational diabetes in Croatia in 2011 were followed up until year 2016. Those registered in CroDiab registry were recognised as new patients with diabetes. ----- RESULTS: Among 40,641 deliveries in 2011, gestational diabetes was reported in 1181 (2.9%) women. Among them 853 (72.23%) were followed up in CroDiab diabetes registry and 32 (3.75%) were identified as new patients with diabetes. Median time from childbirth to onset of diabetes was 29.12 months. The diabetes group did not significantly differ to the group without diabetes according to age (p=0.587), level of education (p=0.549) or marital status (p=0.849) except that the diabetes group was significantly more obese than the group without diabetes (p=0.002). ----- CONCLUSIONS: Based on CroDiab diabetes registry data prevalence of diabetes 5 years after pregnancy complicated with gestational diabetes is 3.75% in Croatia. Women with gestational diabetes during pregnancy, and especially those with higher BMIs, are an important risk group for developing diabetes later in life so screening and preventive measures should be oriented toward them in primary care settings