Association between maternal pre-existing or gestational diabetes and health problems in children

There is general consensus that children of women with pre-existing diabete s mellitus (PDM) have an increased risk of malformations and neurodevelopme ntal problems. Whether this is also true for children of women with gestati onal diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a matter of debate. This study investigated inpatient hospital care up to 10 y of age of children born to GDM and PDM women as a rough estimate of child morbidity. Hospital care of children bor n to 82684 GDM women, 3874 PDM women and 1213957 controls was compared by l inking the Swedish Medical Birth Registry with the Hospital Discharge Regis try. Similar comparisons were performed in a local well-controlled group of 326 children born to GDM women in the Lund area. Children of PDM women and to a lesser degree children of GDM women had a statistically significant i ncrease in hospitalizations, evident at least up to 10 y of age. Significan tly increased risks of hospitalization were found for neurological/developm ental disorders [odds ratio (OR) 2.30 and 1.36 for PDM and GDM, respectivel y)], malformations (OR 2.05 and 1.23), infections (OR 1.56 and 1.20) and ac cidents (OR 1.32 and 1.14). Conclusion: The high hospitalization rates of these children indicate an in creased morbidity, including neurodevelopmental disorders.