Maternal and fetal predictors of anthropometry in the first year of life in offspring of women with GDM

IntroductionGestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) carries an increased risk for adverse perinatal and longer-term cardiometabolic consequences in offspring. This study evaluated the utility of maternal anthropometric, metabolic and fetal (cord blood) parameters to predict offspring anthropometry up to 1 year in pregnancies with GDM. Materials and methodsIn this prospective analysis of the MySweetheart study, we included 193/211 women with GDM that were followed up to 1 year postpartum. Maternal predictors included anthropometric (pre-pregnancy BMI, gestational weight gain (GWG), weight and fat mass at the 1(st) GDM visit), and metabolic parameters (fasting insulin and glucose, Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), Quantitative insulin-sensitivity check index (QUICKI), HbA1c, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) at the 1(st) visit and HbA1c at the end of pregnancy). Fetal predictors (N=46) comprised cord blood glucose and insulin, C-Peptide, HOMA-IR, triglycerides and HDL. Offspring outcomes were anthropometry at birth (weight/weight z-score, BMI, small and large for gestational age (SGA,LGA)), 6-8 weeks and 1 year (weight z-score, BMI/BMI z-score, and the sum of 4 skinfolds). ResultsIn multivariate analyses, birth anthropometry (weight, weight z-score, BMI and/or LGA), was positively associated with cord blood HDL and HbA1c at the 1(st) GDM visit, and negatively with maternal QUICKI and HDL at the 1(st) GDM visit (all p <= 0.045). At 6-8 weeks, offspring BMI was positively associated with GWG and cord blood insulin, whereas the sum of skinfolds was negatively associated with HDL at the 1(st) GDM visit (all p <= 0.023). At 1 year, weight z-score, BMI, BMI z-score, and/or the sum of skinfolds were positively associated with pre-pregnancy BMI, maternal weight, and fat mass at the 1(st) GDM visit and 3(rd) trimester HbA1c (all p <= 0.043). BMI z-score and/or the sum of skinfolds were negatively associated with cord blood C-peptide, insulin and HOMA-IR (all p <= 0.041). DiscussionMaternal anthropometric, metabolic, and fetal metabolic parameters independently affected offspring anthropometry during the 1(st) year of life in an age-dependent manner. These results show the complexity of pathophysiological mechanism for the developing offspring and could represent a base for future personalized follow-up of women with GDM and their offspring.