Background: We investigated the association between markers of insulin resistance, chronic inflammation, and adipokines and GDM.
Methods: In our case-cohort study in Johannesburg we included women with GDM and controls. We tested the ability of biomarkers to identify women at high risk of GDM.
Results: Of the 262 pregnant women, 83 (31.7%) had GDM. Women with GDM were heavier (p = 0.04) and had more clinical risk factors (p = 0.008). We found a significant difference in fasting insulin (p < 0.001), adiponectin (p = 0.046), HOMA (p < 0.001) and QUICKI (p < 0.001). HOMA (AUROC = 0.82) or QUICKI (AUROC = 0.82) improved the ability of risk factors to identify women at high risk of GDM.
Conclusions: Insulin sensitivity markers are promising tools to identify women at high risk of GDM.
Keywords: Biomarkers; adiponectin; gestational diabetes; insulin.