This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

Gestational diabetes has become increasingly common in Sweden, particularly among women with less education, lower incomes and those born outside the country, according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. The researchers also found that the relationship between gestational diabetes and complications during pregnancy and childbirth differs among population groups.

Researchers analyzed data from 938,798 pregnancies in Sweden between 2015 and 2023. By linking information from the Swedish Pregnancy Register with national registers, they investigated how gestational diabetes is associated with factors such as education, income and region of birth.

The prevalence of gestational diabetes increased from 1.5% in 2015 to 6.6% in 2023. The increase was greatest among women born outside Sweden, women with less education and women with lower incomes.

"Our results show clear differences in the prevalence of gestational diabetes between social groups in Sweden. This suggests that preventive efforts need to take both social and demographic factors into account," says Nina Kaegi-Braun, a physician and researcher at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet.

The study also showed that women with gestational diabetes were more likely to experience pregnancy-related complications, such as high blood pressure during pregnancy, as well as complications during childbirth. The association was stronger among women with less education than among women with postsecondary education. However, researchers observed no clear differences between income groups when they analyzed the burden of complications.

Source link