Previous adverse pregnancy events as a predictor of gestational diabetes mellitus in Southern Ethiopia: a case control study

Abstract

Introduction

Gestational diabetes mellitus is a type of glucose intolerance that first manifests itself during pregnancy. A pregnant woman and her unborn child are at an increased risk of pregnancy complications and poor neonatal outcomes. Pregnancy diabetes affects one out of every 200 women. Therefore, this study aims to identify the determinants of gestational diabetes mellitus among pregnant women attending an antenatal care service in Gedeo Zone, Ethiopia.

Methods

A facility-based case-control study design was employed from 25 January 2020 through 25 April 2020. The study included 80 cases and 240 control groups of pregnant women. Face-to-face interviews with structured questionnaires were used to collect data. For analyses, data was entered into Epidata version 3.1 and exported to the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23.0. Variables with p .25 or lower in bivariate analysis were fitted to multivariable analysis. A multivariable logistic regression model with a 95% confidence interval and a p-Value of .05 was used.

Results

Family history of diabetes mellitus [AOR 1.837; 95% CI (1.06–3.18)], history of spontaneous abortion [AOR 2.39; 95% CI 1.33–4.31), history of still birth [AOR 2.240 (1.222–4.105)], and history of delivery of a macrocosmic baby in the previous pregnancy [AOR 1.99 (1.157–3.43)] were found to be predictors of GDM.

Conclusion

Previous adverse pregnancy outcomes were found to be the main predictors of GDM. Women with gestational diabetes mellitus should be followed after delivery in order to monitor hyper-glycemic status.

Keywords:

• Determinants
• adverse
• gestational diabetes mellitus
• Southern Ethiopia
• predictors

Transparency

Declaration of funding

Dilla University has funded the expenses needed for data collection.

Declaration of financial/other relationships

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Author contributions

HT, RHK, SH, MDM, GGK, YB and WM design and conceived the study, developed the tool, coordinated data collection, and carried out the statistical analysis, and drafted the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Acknowledgements

Authors are thankful to the study participants for giving their fruitful time to participate in this study and for their unlimited support throughout the data collection

Data availability statement

All data included in this manuscript can be accessed from the corresponding author upon request through the email address

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Ethical approval and clearance were obtained from Institutional Review Board (IRB) of Dilla University, college of Medicine and Health science with the ethics approval number 0723/20-04. Official letters have been sent and submitted to all respective health departments. Permission was also obtained from the appropriate authorities. Prior to data collection, all participants provided written informed consent following a brief explanation of the study’s purpose and objectives of the study, effects, and importance of screening were provided; for participants who were unable to read or write, informed consent was obtained from their legal guardian or legally authorized representative. Participants’ involvement in the study was totally voluntary basis, and those who were unwilling to participate in the study or who wished to discontinue their participation at any time were informed that they could do so without restriction. To protect their privacy, interview was conducted with the participation of only the interviewer and the interviewee and participants were identified by an identification code. Emphasis was placed on the created relaxed atmosphere while we conducted the interview. Confidentiality was maintained throughout the study by avoiding using the participants’ names in the questionnaire. For security reasons, the collected data was kept under lock and key and used only for the purposes of the study. All necessary methods were carried out in accordance with the guidelines of institutional and Declaration of Helsinki. Women diagnosed with GDM and other medical problems were linked to appropriate care and management.