Diagnosis Gestational Diabetes
All pregnant women need to undergo certain basic investigation such as routine urine examination, ultrasound, blood examination for hemoglobin, blood grouping and typing for infections such as syphilis. This will ensure the overall well being of the woman. Fasting and post-prandial blood sugar examination is usually done to screen for diabetes. Screening is done as part of the initial examination of the pregnant woman in the first trimester and subsequently in the second trimester also.
If the blood levels are high, it is confirmed by the glucose tolerance test. In this test, blood glucose is tested at fasting level and then a glucose solution containing 100 gms of glucose is given to the pregnant woman. Subsequently blood glucose is once again tested at 1 hour, 2 hours and 3 hours interval. Based on the blood glucose levels it is decided as to whether the woman had gestational diabetes or not.
Other additional investigations to diagnose diabetes are -
- HbA1C which tells about the diabetic state in the last 3 months
- Kidney function tests
- Urine culture, if urinary tract infection is suspected
- Ultrasound, to assess fetal well being
