Early pregnancy lipid concentrations and the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus

Enquobahrie, Daniel A.; Williams, Michelle A.; Qiu, Chunfang; Luthy, David A.

doi:10.1016/j.diabres.2005.03.022

« Previous Next »Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice
Volume 70, Issue 2 , Pages 134-142, November 2005

Early pregnancy lipid concentrations and the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus

Daniel A. Enquobahrie
- Center for Perinatal Studies, Swedish Medical Center, 747 Broadway, Suite 4 North, Seattle, WA 98122, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
- Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 206 215 3054; fax: +1 206 386 3173.
Michelle A. Williams
- Center for Perinatal Studies, Swedish Medical Center, 747 Broadway, Suite 4 North, Seattle, WA 98122, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
Chunfang Qiu
- Center for Perinatal Studies, Swedish Medical Center, 747 Broadway, Suite 4 North, Seattle, WA 98122, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
David A. Luthy
- Obstetrix Medical Group, Seattle, WA, USA

Received 8 July 2004; received in revised form 3 January 2005; accepted 2 March 2005. published online 11 April 2005.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine if early pregnancy maternal plasma lipid concentrations are elevated in women who later developed gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) as compared with women who do not. Women, recruited prior to 16 weeks gestation, were followed until delivery. Maternal plasma lipid concentrations were measured in samples collected at 13 weeks gestation on average. Generalized linear models were used to estimate relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). 5.5% of the cohort (47/851) developed GDM. Elevated triglyceride (TG) was positively associated with GDM risk (p for trend <0.001). After adjusting for maternal pre-pregnancy adiposity and other confounders, women with TG concentrations ≥137mg/dl experienced a 3.5-fold increased risk of GDM (95% CI: 1.1–10.5) as compared with women who had concentrations <96mg/dl. We noted a linear component of trend in risk of GDM with increasing plasma TG. Each 20mg/dl increase in TG was associated with a 10% increase in GDM risk (RR=1.1; 95% CI: 1.0–1.3). Associations between GDM risk and plasma concentrations of other lipids (i.e., total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, and low-density lipoprotein) were not evident. Larger prospective studies are needed to confirm our findings and to identify modifiable determinants of pregnancy-associated dyslipidemia.