[mldr2861]

Please help w/any advice.
My son and his girlfriend are having their 1st child, we were all so excited until last week she was rushed into the dr.s office and later diagnosed w/type 1 diabetes. She is 20 years old and no family history she is 26 weeks pregnant so we have no idea what her blood glucose levels were prior. Her ac1 count is 9.6 now and her bg levels are up and down until they get her insulin dosage adjusted. What kind of effects could this have on her and the baby for the rest of her pregnancy?

[RobiJo]

Welcome to df. Congrats on being close to becoming a grandma. Her A1c is much higher than recommended for pregnancy.. but she didn't know she was D until after she was pregnant. The most important thing is to get those numbers down. If she hasn't already been set up with one she should ask for a high risk ob. Try to relax and keep asking the doctors questions. They will do what is necessary to insure the health and safety of both mom and baby. They will likely do extra/more frequent ultra sounds as well.

She should also make an appointment with an ophthalmologist (eye doctor) as well.

[xMenace]

Diabetic moms are noted for having very large babies. Apparently all that excess sugar makes them grow. Where she's likely been high for 26 weeks, I'd be prepared to skip the breastfeeding and move right into sirloins.

RobiJo is right. They'll take care of her. The big baby part is true. Diabetes and Pregnancy FAQs, Birth Defects, BD, NCBDDD, CDC

[KCP]

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
I second that: She needs to get the numbers down, esp in the next few weeks as this is the time when her baby is going to be doing the most growth size wise. She cant do anything aboutthe previous 26 weeks but she can about the future!
She needs to cut out sugars, so juices, soda lollies chos etc.. Has she seen a dietition? they should be able to help her foods wise.
The biggest risks she faces are: heart defects, neural tube defects and things like club foot. Her baby is likely to be larger as the excess insulin production from the baby will cause it to grow quite large. Think a 8-10 pound baby. ON the other hand it could be that the baby will be fine, no issues health wise, but the biggest issue is the size the baby grows to. Not to mention, they will need to keep an eye on the baby directly after the birth as the lack of sugar from mum that was passing through the placenta will be gone. THis can cause the baby to go into hypoglyceamia which will mean lots of observation for the first few days.
Also, i dont know the protocols overseas but in New Zealand they induce pregnant diabetics at 38 weeks..

[RobiJo]

Originally Posted by xMenace

I'd be prepared to skip the breastfeeding and move right into sirloins.

John that's terrible!!!!

[ShintoBean]

If she is 26 weeks pregnant she is well into her 2nd trimester. When did she discover she was pregnant and begin seeing an OB? Of course most people don't know what their blood sugar is before pregnancy, but it is pretty standard to do a whole battery of tests (diabetes included) at the very beginning of pregnancy, as well as urine tests looking for sugar/protein at every office visit. A glucose tolerance test is also done at some point during the second trimester, but I can't remember off the top of my head now. An A1C of 9.6 is pretty high for new onset of gestational diabetes, but it is possible that she was fine the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, and only began to develop it in her 2nd trimester (which would be a good thing for her and baby).
Therefore, unless she didn't realize she was pregnant/didn't see a doctor (which is entirely possible) until a few weeks ago, it is highly unlikely pre-existing Type I diabetes would go undiagnosed. More likely, it is a new onset Type I that happened to begin during pregnancy or gestational diabetes. The only way to tell is to she how she does after pregnancy.
Either way, the advice given previously still stands, see a high risk ob, test, test, test, and work on getting the sugar lower.
Oh yeah, and don't let it overshadow the excitement of a new baby on the way!