New study finds pregnant women with glucose intolerance at risk of heart disease

ONTARIO, Canada Mild glucose intolerance in pregnancy may be an early identifier of women who are at increased risk of heart disease in the future, found a new study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

In a large population-based cohort study, researchers from the University of Toronto and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences studied data on 435,696 women in Ontario, Canada, who gave birth between April, 1994 and March, 1998. All women were followed until March 31, 2008. The study excluded women with pre-existing diabetes.

"Women who had an abnormal glucose challenge test but then did not have gestational diabetes had an increased risk of future cardiovascular disease, compared to the general population, but a lower risk than women who actually did have gestational diabetes," stated Baiju Shah, Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences and coauthor.

Therefore, current screening procedures for gestational diabetes might also provide a means for the early identification of women who are at risk for developing heart disease later in life.