Hot weather could lead to gestational diabetes misdiagnosis
Tuesday January 23rd, 2018
Women can be misdiagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus when the temperature is over 25C because blood flow could be diminishing sugar extraction from blood to tissue, Greek researchers report today.
Current tests involve fasting blood sugar levels and non-fasting blood sugar levels and if either of these values is above a certain level, the woman may be diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus.
While previous observational studies have suggested that there could be some misdiagnosis because more cases are reported in the summer, no studies have investigated the impact of temperature on diagnosis, the researchers say.
The researchers from the Alexandra Hospital, Greece, published in the European Journal of Endocrinology today (23 January 2018), have examined retrospective data of more than 7,500 pregnant women who had a GDM test at varying times of the year.
They found average non-fasting blood sugar values were higher in summer compared with winter, while fasting sugar levels were not. This led to a 70% increased rate of diagnosis.
In a smaller group, they found that non-fasting blood sugar levels were twice as likely to be considered high at temperatures of more than 25C.
Dr Eleni Anastasiou, lead study author, said: “Our findings suggest the need to take into consideration environmental temperature during interpretation of test results used to diagnose GDM. We hypothesise that the seasonal changes observed may be due to an increase in blood flow that may diminish sugar extraction from blood to tissue.”
Dr Anastasiou’s group now wants to focus on identifying improved screening tools during and after pregnancy in GDM patients, and carry out randomised controlled trials to investigate new insulin regimens for these patients.
Vasileiou V, Kyratzoglou E, Paschou S et al. The impact of environmental temperature on the diagnosis of gestational diabetes. Eur J Endocrinol 23 January 2018 [abstract]
Tags: Diabetes | Europe | Women's Health & Gynaecology
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