Frequency of Gestational Diabetes in Pregnant Women with Hepatitis C in Civil Hospital Karachi

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the frequency of gestational diabetes in pregnant women with hepatitis C who presented at civil hospital Karachi Subject and Methods: This cross-sectional study was done at the Gynae and OBS department of Civil Hospital Karachi during the period of one year from December 2019 to December 2020, after obtaining approval from the IRBD of DUHS, DMC Civil Hospital, Karachi. Pregnant women with singleton pregnancies aged 16 to 45 years with positive HCV antibodies according to Elisa method tests were included in the study. Eligible patients were tested for glucose tolerance by performing an OGTT. The serum glucose level was measured using a glucometer. A study proforma was used to collect the information, and the data was analyzed using SPSS version 26. Results: A total of 197 HCV positive pregnant women were studied; their average age was 28.83±3.77 years and their average gestational age 25.95±1.45 weeks. The frequency of gestational diabetes among pregnant women with hepatitis C was 35.53% (70/197). The rate of gestational diabetes was associated with age groups (p = 0.020), while the frequency of gestational diabetes was statistically insignificant according to gestational age and duration of HCV (p > 0.05). Conclusion: As per the study conclusion, the frequency of gestational diabetes was observed to be frequently high among HCV positive pregnant women. Based on these findings, pregnant women who have HCV are at an increased risk of developing gestational diabetes. Keywords: HCV, pregnancy, Gestational diabetes