Epidemiology

It is estimated that in 2021, 16.7% of pregnancies worldwide that resulted in live births were affected by some form of hyperglycemia.[2]​ Of these, 80.3% were due to gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), while the rest were due to diabetes (including type 1 and type 2 diabetes) detected prior to, or during, the pregnancy.[2]

Prevalence rates varied significantly between geographical locations; they were the lowest in Sweden at 2.1%, ranging to 15.0% in Europe, 20.7% in North America and the Caribbean, and the highest in the United Arab Emirates at 38.1%.[2] In one US study, GDM prevalence in a California population varied from approximately 4.5% in non-Hispanic white and African-American women to 10.2% in Asian women.[3] Notably, the prevalence of GDM was higher among Asian women even at low BMIs.[3]

The prevalence of GDM is increasing; a 2021 study examining the trends in GDM from 2011 to 2019 found evidence that GDM rates have increased across all racial and ethnic subgroups in the US.[4] A trend toward increasing prevalence has been particularly noted in women in Asian countries and those with indigenous (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, US) ethnicity.[5][6][7][8][9]​​  In the US, the percentage of mothers giving birth who received a diagnosis of GDM increased from 6% in 2016 to 8.3% in 2021.[10]​ Increases in GDM were seen in each maternal age group, and rates rose steadily with maternal age; in 2021, the rate for mothers ages ≥40 years (15.6%) was nearly six times as high as the rate for mothers ages <20 years (2.7%).[10] 

Information about risk factors for GDM is limited in large published data sets. All of the factors contributing to the variability by race and ethnicity are not yet well understood; however, differences in prevalence have been associated with sociopolitical determinants of health that are often associated with race in the US, including food insecurity and neighborhood walkability.[11][12]​​​​ In all populations, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, and advancing maternal age are potential contributing factors to the development of GDM.[13] 

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