Intensive Glycemic Treatment During Type 1 Diabetes Pregnancy: A Story of (Mostly) Sweet Success!

Abstract

Studies from Scotland and Canada confirm large increases in the incidence of pregnancies complicated by pregestational type 1 diabetes (T1D). With this increased antenatal workload comes more specialization and staff expertise, which may be important as diabetes technology use increases. While euglycemia remains elusive and obstetrical intervention (earlier delivery, increased operative deliveries) is increasing, there have been some notable successes in the past 5–10 years. These include a decline in the rates of congenital anomaly (Canada) and stillbirths (U.K.) and substantial reductions in both maternal hypoglycemia (both moderate and severe) across many countries. However, pregnant women with T1D still spend ∼30–45% of the time (8–11 h/day) hyperglycemic during the second and third trimesters. The duration of maternal hyperglycemia appears unchanged in routine clinical care over the past decade. This ongoing fetal exposure to maternal hyperglycemia likely explains the persistent rates of large for gestational age (LGA), neonatal hypoglycemia, and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions in T1D offspring. The Continuous Glucose Monitoring in Women With Type 1 Diabetes in Pregnancy Trial (CONCEPTT) found that pregnant women using real-time continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) spent 5% less time (1.2 h/day) hyperglycemic during the third trimester, with clinically relevant reductions in LGA, neonatal hypoglycemia, and NICU admissions. This article will review the progress in our understanding of the intensive glycemic treatment of T1D pregnancy, focusing in particular on the recent technological advances in CGM and automated insulin delivery. It suggests that even with advanced diabetes technology, optimal maternal dietary intake is needed to minimize the neonatal complications attributed to postprandial hyperglycemia.