Diabetes in Pregnancy (Including Gestational Diabetes)
Diabetes is a condition caused by the inability of an individual’s body to use insulin and the absence or inadequate production of insulin. Also, diabetes is connected with the existence of high sugar levels, glucose, in the blood. There are various types of diabetes, like Gestational Diabetes which affects pregnant women. Diabetes in pregnancy is caused by various characters, has some signs, and can be prevented and cured in many ways.
Gestational diabetes has affected many pregnant women in the United States and the cases of this disease are rising. Diabetes in pregnancy is caused by high sugar levels in the pregnant women’s blood, therefore impacting how the body cells utilize glucose. Besides, pregnancy in women with normal glucose metabolism is characterized by fasting levels of blood glucose that are lower than in the non-pregnant state due to insulin-independent glucose uptake by the fetus and placenta (American Diabetes Association, 2017). The insulin absorption by the placenta then leads to the production of hormones which causes glucose build up in the blood, leading to gestational diabetes if the pancreas cannot make enough insulin to handle the high sugar level.
The signs and symptoms of diabetes during pregnancy are not different from the type I and type II diabetes. The signs include; frequent urination, thirst, polyphagia, nausea, fatigue, and blurred vision. Also, rampant vaginal infections and the presence of abnormal glucose levels in pregnant women’s urine after tests enables an individual to sense they have gestational diabetes. The rising cases of diabetes in women have put pressure on healthcare resources (De Wit et al., 2019). Various nursing care techniques and medications for gestational diabetes have been created to help cure the disease.
Nursing care plans for gestational diabetes are; undergoing frequent oral glucose tests, proper diet, and light exercising, regular urinal tests, and blood glucose monitoring. Also, medications used to lower oral glucose are Metformin and glibenclamide (glyburide) (De Wit et al., 2019). Besides, insulin injections can also be used to treat diabetes in pregnancy if the patient is affected by the medications.
Other than the treatment methods for gestational diabetes, various precautions need to be taken to avoid contraction of the disease. Maintaining a good diet, avoiding foods that contain much sugar, frequent clinical checkups, and maintaining a healthy weight before and during the pregnancy can prevent gestational diabetes. Moreover, ignorance of the warnings and treatments after contracting diabetes can affect both the mother and infant. The risks include abortion, fetal anomalies, preeclampsia, fetal demise, macrosomia among others (American Diabetes Association, 2017). Besides, the pregnant woman can have complications during delivery since the infants become too big if diabetes is not controlled, leading to a caesarian section. Upon successful delivery, the child can have obesity or other complications as they grow while the mother has high chances of getting type I diabetes.
From the above discussion, gestational diabetes is a serious disease and affects not only the mother but the baby as well. Besides, pregnant women should follow precautions to avoid contracting diabetes. Even after being infected, they should receive the required treatment to assure them of the normal delivery and healthy life of both the mother and infant. Counseling should also be done to pregnant women in clinics to reduce the chances of contracting gestational diabetes. Finally, pregnant women have the responsibility to ensure they give birth to healthy infants, thus should follow the warnings to avoid gestational diabetes.
References
American Diabetes Association. (2017). 13 Management of diabetes in pregnancy. Diabetes Care, 40(Supplement 1), S114-S119. Retrieved from https://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/40/Supplement_1/S114.full-text.pdf
De Wit, L., Rademaker, D., Voormolen, D. N., Akerboom, B. M., Kiewiet-Kemper, R. M., Soeters, M. R., … & Kuppens, S. M. (2019). SUGAR-DIP trial: oral medication strategy versus insulin for diabetes in pregnancy, study protocol for a multicentre, open-label, non-inferiority, randomized controlled trial. BMJ Open, 9(8), 1-8, e029808. Retrieved from https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/bmjopen/9/8/e029808.full.pdf