Maternal birth weight as an indicator of early and late gestational diabetes mellitus: The Japan Environment and Children's Study

Abstract

ABSTRACTAimsThis study aimed to investigate the association of maternal birth weight (MBW) with early and late gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).MethodsA total of 69318 pregnant Japanese women were included in this birth cohort study. The associations between maternal birth weight and early gestational diabetes mellitus (diagnosed at <24 gestational weeks) and late GDM (diagnosed at ≥24 gestational weeks) were investigated using a multinomial logistic regression model, with an maternal birth weight of 3000–3499 g as the reference category.ResultsLower maternal birth weight was associated with higher odds of developing early and late gestational diabetes mellitus (P < 0.0001 and P < 0.0001, respectively). The adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for early gestational diabetes mellitus in participants with a MBW of <2500 g and 2500–2999 g were 1.345 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.912–1.984) and 1.338 (95% CI: 1.098–1.629), respectively. The aORs for late gestational diabetes mellitus in participants with a MBW of <2500 g and 2500–2999 g were, 1.657 (95% CI: 1.298–2.115) and 1.218 (95% CI: 1.058–1.402), respectively.ConclusionsRegardless of the gestational age when gestational diabetes mellitus was diagnosed, a lower maternal birth weight was associated with an increased risk of gestational diabetes mellitus. Furthermore, the association of a MBW <2500 g with late gestational diabetes mellitus tended to be stronger than that with early gestational diabetes mellitus.