November 20, 2000
Gestational Diabetes
Question from Cincinnati, Ohio, USA:
child. My first non-fasting blood sugar was 160 mg/dl [8.9 mmol/L], and I am scheduled to do the three-hour test next week. What is the likelihood (percentage) that I have gestational diabetes? I read somewhere that only 20% of people who test positive on the one-hour test actually end up testing positive on the three-hour test.
Answer:
You are correct. Most women with an abnormal one-hour glucose test will test negative on the three-hour test. Predicting an individual risk is difficult since many factors are involved in developing gestational diabetes. However, the higher the one-hour test result, the more likely the three-hour test will also be abnormal. In fact, if the one-hour test is over 185 mg/dl [10.3 mmol/L], the diagnosis of gestational diabetes is made.
OWJ
