Author(s)

Letícia Nascimento Medeiros Bortolon¹, Luciana de Paula Leão Triz¹, Bruna de Souza Faustino¹, Larissa Bianca Cunha de Sá¹, Denise Rosso Tenório Wanderley Rocha¹, Alberto Krayyem Arbex^1,2

¹Division of Endocrinology, IPEMED Medical School, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
²Visiting Scholar, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, USA.

Gestational mellitus diabetes (GDM) is a highly prevalent metabolic disorder among pregnant women nowadays. It is defined as any level of glucose intolerance, appearing or first being recognized during pregnancy. It is essential to diagnose and treat GDM early, in order to reduce or avoid complications for mother and fetus. Recently, new guidelines have changed the diagnosis criteria, and it is expected that the prevalence of GDM will increase by approximately 18%. A relevant goal of these new definitions is to provide a better care for pregnant women, in an attempt to reduce fetal and maternal complications. These new criteria will also increase the impact on costs of the health care system. Treatment must be individualized for best results, including a specific diet, physical activity and the use of medications. Metformin and Insulin use are analyzed in detail, in face of new evidences regarding their safety and efficacy during pregnancy.

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus, Pregnancy, Glucose Intolerance, Metformin, Insulin, Complications

Bortolon, L. , de Paula Leão Triz, L. , de Souza Faustino, B. , de Sá, L. , Rocha, D. and Arbex, A. (2016) Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: New Diagnostic Criteria. Open Journal of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, 6, 13-19. doi: 10.4236/ojemd.2016.61003.