June 15, 2001
Family Planning
Question from :
I’m 30 and have had type 1 diabetes for 18 years without any complications so far, and I know that many women who have have positive pregnancy outcomes, but my husband feels very strongly that I should not become pregnant because he is quite fearful that I will die. He thinks the risk of this is too great, and he is not willing to take it. What are the actual current statistics on the fatality rates of women with type 1 diabetes, before, during, or after delivery?
Answer:
I have never had a mother die from pregnancy and diabetes in the past 10 years. However, some of my patients have become very sick. If you are in good glucose control, have no other evidence of vascular disease, and are taken care of by appropriate specialists in high-risk obstetrics you should do very well. The risk of maternal death is close to that of a woman without diabetes, but there are no guarantees.
OWJ
