Association of History of Gestational Diabetes With Long-term Cardiovascular Disease Risk in a Large Prospective Cohort of US Women

Abstract

Gestational diabetes (GD) is the onset or recognition of impaired glucose metabolism in pregnancy. Quiz Ref ID Approximately 6% of pregnancies in the United States are complicated by GD, with trends indicating increases in prevalence in recent decades.¹ The American Heart Association identifies GD as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women,² based on consistent evidence for the relationships between GD with subsequent hypertension,^3,4 dyslipidemia,^4-6 type 2 diabetes,⁷ vascular dysfunction and atherosclerosis,^4,8-11 and other markers of cardiometabolic risk.^9,12,13 In addition to accumulating evidence supporting GD as a risk factor for intermediate phenotypes, retrospective analyses indicate a positive relationship between GD with major CVD events (eg, myocardial infarction [MI], stroke).^14-18 However, the relationship between GD with subsequent CVD has not been evaluated in prospectively with careful control for common risk factors or mediating lifestyle characteristics.