Congenital anomalies of the spine and skeletal, genitouri- nary, and cardiovascular systems and visceral situs inversus are significantly more frequent among infants of diabetic mothers than normal. The most specific anomaly is sacral agenesis.
What birth defects are caused by diabetes?
Among the defects in children born to women with diabetes are heart problems, brain and spinal defects, oral clefts, kidney and gastrointestinal tract defects, and limb deficiencies. Diabetes diagnosed before pregnancy was linked with about 50% of the birth defect categories analyzed.
What are the complications of infants of diabetic mothers?
Infants of diabetic mothers are prone to various neonatal adverse outcomes, including metabolic and hematologic disorders, respiratory distress, cardiac disorders and neurologic impairment due to perinatal asphyxia and birth traumas, among others.
How does diabetes affect the fetus during pregnancy?
The mother’s excess amounts of blood glucose are transferred to the fetus during pregnancy. This causes the baby’s body to secrete increased amounts of insulin, which results in increased tissue and fat deposits. The infant of a diabetic mother is often larger than expected for the gestational age.
Can a woman have more than one pregnancy with gestational diabetes?
Some women have more than one pregnancy affected by gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes usually shows up in the middle of pregnancy. Doctors most often test for it between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy.
What are the signs and symptoms of infant of diabetic mother?
Infant of diabetic mother – IDMs are more likely to have 1 Breathing difficulty due to less mature lungs. 2 High red blood cell count (polycythemia). 3 High bilirubin level (newborn jaundice).
What are the treatment options for diabetes in pregnancy?
Prenatal care is essential to a healthy outcome when a mother has diabetes in pregnancy. Careful diet management, blood glucose monitoring, and insulin therapy can help keep a mother’s blood glucose levels at normal levels and decrease many of the risks to her baby.
