OBJECTIVEThe objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of maternal hyperglycemia during pregnancy on cardiometabolic risk in offspring during early childhood.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSA total of 970 mothers who had joined the Hyperglycemia and Adverse Pregnancy Outcome study were reevaluated, together with their child born during the study period, 7 years after delivery.RESULTSOffspring born to mothers diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), as defined by the World Health Organization 2013 GDM criteria, had higher rates of abnormal glucose tolerance (4.7% vs. 1.7%; P = 0.04), higher rates of overweight or obesity, greater BMI, higher blood pressure (BP), lower oral disposition index, and a trend toward reduced β-cell function compared with those born to mothers without GDM. For each SD increase in maternal fasting, 1-h, and 2-h glucose levels on oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) between 24 and 32 weeks of the index pregnancy, the risk of abnormal glucose tolerance in the offspring showed a corresponding increase (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1.85–2.00). The associations were independent of BMI before pregnancy, childhood obesity, or being born large for gestational age. The area under the curve for glucose levels during the five-point OGTT increased to a similar extent in boys and girls with each SD increase in maternal 1-h and 2-h plasma glucose on OGTTs during pregnancy. All three maternal glucose levels were also associated with increased adjusted ORs for childhood overweight or obesity and adiposity among girls, but not boys.CONCLUSIONSMaternal hyperglycemia in pregnancy is independently associated with offsprings’ risk of abnormal glucose tolerance, obesity, and higher BP at 7 years of age. Its effect on childhood adiposity was apparent only in girls, not boys.

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OBJECTIVEAdolescent offspring of women with a history of gestational diabetes (GD) were evaluated for their cardiometabolic risks at a mean age of 15 years.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSOne hundred and twenty-nine adolescents who were assessed for their cardiometabolic risks at 8 years of age were reassessed at 15 years of age.RESULTSAdolescent offspring of mothers with GD had similar blood pressure, plasma lipid profile, and a rate of abnormal glucose tolerance as control subjects. In utero hyperinsulinemia was associated with a 17-fold increase in metabolic syndrome and a 10-fold increase in overweight at adolescence, independent of birth weight, Tanner stage, maternal GD status, and mother's BMI.CONCLUSIONSIn utero environment of hyperinsulinemia, irrespective of the degree of maternal GD, was associated with increased risk of overweight and metabolic syndrome during early adolescence in the offspring.

BackgroundPolycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with increased metabolic risk, though data on long-term follow-up of cardiometabolic traits are limited. We postulated that Chinese women with PCOS would have higher risk of incident diabetes and cardiometabolic abnormalities than those without PCOS during long-term follow-up.Methods and findingsOne hundred ninety-nine Chinese women with PCOS diagnosed by the Rotterdam criteria and with a mean age of 41.2 years (SD = 6.4) completed a follow-up evaluation after an average of 10.6 ± 1.3 years. Two hundred twenty-five women without PCOS (mean age: 54.1 ± 6.7 years) who underwent baseline and follow-up evaluation over the same period were used for comparison. Progression of glycaemic status of women both with and without PCOS was assessed by using 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) screening with the adoption of 2009 American Diabetes Association diagnostic criteria. The frequency of impaired glucose regulation, hypertension, and hyperlipidaemia of women with PCOS at follow-up has increased from 31.7% (95% CI 25.2%–38.1%) to 47.2% (95% CI 40.3%–54.2%), 16.1% (95% CI 11.0%–21.2%) to 34.7% (95% CI 28.1%–41.3%), and 52.3% (95% CI 45.3%–59.2%) to 64.3% (95% CI 57.7%–71.0%), respectively. The cumulative incidence of diabetes mellitus (DM) in follow-up women with PCOS is 26.1% (95% CI 20.0%–32.2%), almost double that in the cohort of women without PCOS (p < 0.001). Age-standardised incidence of diabetes among women with PCOS was 22.12 per 1,000 person-years (95% CI 10.86–33.37) compared with the local female population incidence rate of 8.76 per 1,000 person-years (95% CI 8.72–8.80) and 10.09 per 1,000 person-years (95% CI 4.92–15.26, p < 0.001) for women without PCOS in our study. Incidence rate for women with PCOS aged 30–39 years was 20.56 per 1,000 person-years (95% CI 12.57–31.87), which is approximately 10-fold higher than that of the age-matched general female population in Hong Kong (1.88 per 1,000 person-years, [95% CI 1.85–1.92]). The incidence rate of type 2 DM (T2DM) of both normal-weight and overweight women with PCOS was around double that of corresponding control groups (normal weight: 8.96 [95% CI 3.92–17.72] versus 4.86 per 1,000 person-years [95% CI 2.13–9.62], p > 0.05; overweight/obese: 28.64 [95% CI 19.55–40.60] versus 14.1 per 1,000 person-years [95% CI 8.20–22.76], p < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis identified that baseline waist-to-hip ratio (odds ratio [OR] = 1.71 [95% CI 1.08–2.69], p < 0.05) and elevated triglyceride (OR = 6.63 [95% CI 1.23–35.69], p < 0.05) are associated with the progression to T2DM in PCOS. Limitations of this study include moderate sample size with limited number of incident diabetes during follow-up period and potential selection bias.ConclusionsHigh risk of diabetes and increased cardiovascular disease risk factors among Chinese women with PCOS are highlighted in this long-term follow-up study. Diabetes onset was, on average, 10 years earlier among women with PCOS than in women without PCOS.