PERINATAL MORTALITY IN DIABETIC PREGNANCY

Abstract

ABSTRACT The length of treatment in the ward during the latter part of pregnancy has a considerable influence on the perinatal mortality in diabetic pregnancy. Thus, in the present New Series (1946–1960) comprising 486 babies the mortality decreased from 29 to 18 and 12 per cent respectively, when the series was divided in three groups with increasing length of treatment in hospital. The prognosis for the baby born of a diabetic mother is best in the foetal age group 252–266 days and the birth weight group 3500–3950 g. In the total series of 643 babies (1926–1960) 106 babies fulfilled both criteria, and only one of these babies died. The good result in this group did not depend on the length of treatment during the later part of pregnancy, in contradistinction to the mortality outside the favourable group. An attempt to define maternal factors which might determine the baby being born just with the ideal weight and age was unsuccessful. At the present the cause of the low »inborne« mortality of this group is unknown. From a practical point of view it is of interest that whenever a baby of a diabetic mother is born with a foetal age of 252–266 days and a birth weight of 3500–3950 g it is practically certain that it will not die during the neonatal period.