BACKGROUND It is uncertain whether treatment of mild gestational diabetes mellitus improves pregnancy outcomes. METHODS Women who were in the 24th to 31st week of gestation and who met the criteria for mild gestational diabetes mellitus (i.e., an abnormal result on an oral glucose-tolerance test but a fasting glucose level below 95 mg per deciliter [5.3 mmol per liter]) were randomly assigned to usual prenatal care (control group) or dietary intervention, self-monitoring of blood glucose, and insulin therapy, if necessary (treatment group). The primary outcome was a composite of stillbirth or perinatal death and neonatal complications, including hyperbilirubinemia, hypoglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, and birth trauma. RESULTS A total of 958 women were randomly assigned to a study group — 485 to the treatment group and 473 to the control group. We observed no significant difference between groups in the frequency of the composite outcome (32.4% and 37.0% in the treatment and control groups, respectively; P = 0.14). There were no perinatal deaths. However, there were significant reductions with treatment as compared with usual care in several prespecified secondary outcomes, including mean birth weight (3302 vs. 3408 g), neonatal fat mass (427 vs. 464 g), the frequency of large-for-gestational-age infants (7.1% vs. 14.5%), birth weight greater than 4000 g (5.9% vs. 14.3%), shoulder dystocia (1.5% vs. 4.0%), and cesarean delivery (26.9% vs. 33.8%). Treatment of gestational diabetes mellitus, as compared with usual care, was also associated with reduced rates of preeclampsia and gestational hypertension (combined rates for the two conditions, 8.6% vs. 13.6%; P = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Although treatment of mild gestational diabetes mellitus did not significantly reduce the frequency of a composite outcome that included stillbirth or perinatal death and several neonatal complications, it did reduce the risks of fetal overgrowth, shoulder dystocia, cesarean delivery, and hypertensive disorders.

Objective Fetal growth is associated with long-term health yet no appropriate standards exist for the early identification of under- or over-grown fetuses. We sought to develop contemporary fetal growth standards for four self-identified U.S. racial/ethnic groups. Study Design We recruited for prospective follow-up 2,334 healthy women with low-risk, singleton pregnancies from 12 community and perinatal centers between July 2009 and January 2013. The cohort comprised: 614 (26%) non-Hispanic Whites, 611 (26%) non-Hispanic Blacks, 649 (28%) Hispanics, and 460 (20%) Asians. Women were screened at 8w0d to 13w6d for maternal health status associated with presumably normal fetal growth (aged 18–40 years; body mass index 19.0–29.9 kg/m2; healthy lifestyles and living conditions; low-risk medical and obstetrical history); 92% of recruited women completed the protocol. Women were randomized among four ultrasonology schedules for longitudinal fetal measurement using the Voluson E8 GE Healthcare. In-person interviews and anthropometric assessments were conducted at each visit; medical records were abstracted. The fetuses of 1,737 (74%) women continued to be low-risk (uncomplicated pregnancy, absent anomalies) at birth, and their measurements were included in the standards. Racial/ethnic-specific fetal growth curves were estimated using linear mixed models with cubic splines. Estimated fetal weight and biometric parameter percentiles (5th, 50th, 95th) were determined for each gestational week and comparisons made by race/ethnicity, with and without adjustment for maternal and socio-demographic factors. Results Estimated fetal weight differed significantly by race/ethnicity after 20 weeks. Specifically at 39 weeks, the 5th, 50th, and 95th percentiles were 2790, 3505, and 4402 grams for White, 2633, 3336, and 4226 grams for Hispanic, 2621, 3270, and 4078 grams for Asian, and 2622, 3260, and 4053 grams for Black women (adjusted global p<0.001). For individual parameters, racial/ethnic differences by order of detection were: humerus and femur lengths (10 weeks), abdominal circumference (16 weeks), head circumference (21 weeks), and biparietal diameter (27 weeks). The study-derived standard based solely on the White group erroneously classifies as much as 15% of non-White fetuses as growth-restricted (estimated fetal weight < 5th percentile). Conclusions Significant differences in fetal growth were found among the four groups. Racial/ethnic-specific standards improve the precision in evaluating fetal growth.

Background Oxidative stress has been proposed as a mechanism linking the poor placental perfusion characteristic of preeclampsia with the clinical manifestations of the disorder. We assessed the effects of antioxidant supplementation with vitamins C and E, initiated early in pregnancy, on the risk of serious adverse maternal, fetal, and neonatal outcomes related to pregnancy-associated hypertension. Methods We conducted a multicenter, randomized, double-blind trial involving nulliparous women who were at low risk for preeclampsia. Women were randomly assigned to begin daily supplementation with 1000 mg of vitamin C and 400 IU of vitamin E or matching placebo between the 9th and 16th weeks of pregnancy. The primary outcome was severe pregnancy-associated hypertension alone or severe or mild hypertension with elevated liver-enzyme levels, thrombocytopenia, elevated serum creatinine levels, eclamptic seizure, medically indicated preterm birth, fetal-growth restriction, or perinatal death. Results A total of 10,154 women underwent randomization. The two groups were similar with respect to baseline characteristics and adherence to the study drug. Outcome data were available for 9969 women. There was no significant difference between the vitamin and placebo groups in the rates of the primary outcome (6.1% and 5.7%, respectively; relative risk in the vitamin group, 1.07; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.91 to 1.25) or in the rates of preeclampsia (7.2% and 6.7%, respectively; relative risk, 1.07; 95% CI, 0.93 to 1.24). Rates of adverse perinatal outcomes did not differ significantly between the groups. Conclusions Vitamin C and E supplementation initiated in the 9th to 16th week of pregnancy in an unselected cohort of low-risk, nulliparous women did not reduce the rate of adverse maternal or perinatal outcomes related to pregnancy-associated hypertension (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00135707).

OBJECTIVE To evaluate pregnancy outcomes according to 2009 Institute of Medicine (IOM) gestational weight gain guidelines. METHODS This study is a secondary analysis of a preeclampsia prevention trial among nulliparas carrying singletons. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals (adjusted for maternal age, race, smoking, and treatment group) were calculated based on total weight gain below or above the IOM guidelines, stratified by prepregnancy body mass index (BMI). The referent group was weight gain within the guidelines. RESULTS Of 8,293 pregnancies, 9.5% had weight gain below, 17.5% within, and 73% above IOM guidelines. With excess weight gain, all BMI categories had an increased risk of hypertensive disorders; normal weight and overweight women also had increased risk of cesarean delivery and infant birth weight at or above the 90th centile but a decreased risk of weight below the10th centile. There were no consistent associations with insufficient weight gain and adverse outcomes. CONCLUSION Excess weight gain was prevalent and associated with an increased risk of hypertensive disorders, cesarean delivery and large for gestational age infants..