Diabetes in pregnancy and the unborn child

Gestational diabetes is one form of diabetes that is found in pregnant women who did not have it before the pregnancy. In most instances, such diabetic mothers would deliver a child without complications to the baby as well as to the mother. But, in some pregnant mothers, especially if the blood sugars are not controlled properly, there is a likelihood of developing complications both in the child and in the mother.

Let us take a look at some of the complications that may develop in the unborn baby due to such gestational diabetes.

-Excessive fetal growth

In other words, the conditions known as ‘macrosomia’ can occur in unborn babies in mothers with diabetes and is characterized by ‘over size’ of the fetus in contrast to the expected growth for a particular gestational age or pregnancy age. Such excessive growth seems to take place in response to the high amounts of insulin which is secreted by the childs pancreas in response to the blood sugars that crosses the placenta from the mother to the fetus. When the unborn baby becomes macrosomic, there are several complications that may occur and among them, difficult delivery, probable requirement of a cesarean section, obstructed labor…etc can be taken in as some of the highlights.

-Respiratory distress syndrome

In babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes, it is possible to have a higher risk of a condition known as ‘respiratory distress syndrome’ and the immature lungs would most likely to cause this problem in such mothers. Therefore, these babies should be monitored closely following delivery and this should be more emphasized in case the baby was born prematurely.

-Hypoglycemia

When a ‘large’ child is born to a mother with gestational diabetes, invariably the childs pancreas will still be functioning at a rate and this can make the child develop ‘hypoglycemia’ or ‘low blood sugar’ as a result of higher levels of secreted insulin and lowered levels of blood sugar which till now was maintained by the sugars coming from the mothers blood. Thus, ‘large’ babies should be monitored for falling blood sugar during the first 24 hours and early feeding can minimize the occurrence of this condition in most instances.

-Increased risk of motor and cognitive functional deficiency

It has also been found that, babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes can have a problem in their development in achieving milestones including motor and cognitive milestones, be hyperactive and might have poor attention span….etc.

Apart from this, unborn babies can also suffer indirectly though the complications which can develop in the mother as a response to excessive blood sugar levels during pregnancy.