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Women with GDM are at high risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). A relationship with GDM and future development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been also recognized. Pregnancy and postpartum period in women with GDM give us the opportunity to identify the underlying, often unrecognized, CVD risk factors. Ideally, the postpartum follow-up of this women should be done by a multidisciplinary team to evaluate their cardio-metabolic risk and to counseling regarding lifestyle modification (healthy diet and regular physical activity) and breastfeeding that can reduce their risk. Longer follow-up of these women should be individualized, focusing attention on women at medium-high cardio-metabolic risk. The link between GDM and T2DM-CVD offers us a great opportunity for the diseases prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus is increasing, as is the worldwide prevalence of type 2 diabetes and obesity, even in children and adolescents. Exposure in utero to maternal diabetes carries several short-term consequences due mainly to maternal hyperglycemia, and consequent fetal hyperinsulinemia. Current evidence also supports the hypothesis that adult health and disease have developmental origins, and that disorders in early-life environments prompt metabolic imprinting that results in a greater risk of negative metabolic outcomes later in life. In particular, exposure in utero to maternal diabetes seems to influence long-term metabolic outcomes, carrying a higher risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes, and thus creating a vicious cycle for future generations. In this paper, the short- and long-term consequences of exposure in utero to hyperglycemia are reviewed, focusing particularly on the long-term metabolic consequences, and investigating the possible pathogenic mechanisms involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Analyze plasma phospholipid fatty acids (PPFA) composition and desaturase activity in women with gestational diabetes (GDM) and in women with a normal glucose tolerance (NGT) before and after delivery, and to evaluate the possible relationship between desaturase activity and inflammatory parameters. Methods: PPFA composition was analyzed by gas chromatography in 21 women with GDM and from 21 with NGT, during the third trimester of pregnancy and 6 months after delivery. We used fatty acid product-to-precursor ratios to estimate desaturase activity, and we also measured in all women interleukins six and ten, tumor necrosis factor alpha and C-reactive protein. Results: No significant differences were observed between NGT and GDM women in terms of PPFA composition, both in pregnancy and after pregnancy. Estimated desaturase Δ9-18 activity was significantly higher, and estimated desaturase Δ5 activity was significantly lower during pregnancy in all women. We observed no correlations between inflammatory markers and desaturases activity, during or after pregnancy, in both groups. Conclusions: Our data suggest that GDM does not influence PPFA composition and desaturase activity during pregnancy. In addition, late pregnancy characterized by hyperinsulinemia appears to upregulate desaturase Δ9-18 activity in NGT and GDM women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus is increasing in parallel with the rising prevalence of type 2 diabetes and obesity around the world. Current evidence strongly suggests that women who have had gestational diabetes mellitus are at greater risk of cardiovascular disease later in life. Given the growing prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus, it is important to identify appropriate reliable markers of cardiovascular disease and specific treatment strategies capable of containing obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome in order to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease in the women affected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]