The role of pre-pregnancy care for women with pregestational diabetes mellitus for improving maternal and perinatal outcomes

Abstract

The occurrence of diabetes mellitus in women before pregnancy (pregestational diabetes mellitus can have various adverse consequences for the mother, fetus, child, and pregnancy. Pregnancy planning in women with pregestational diabetes mellitus significantly improves the outcomes of pregnancy and childbirth. The introduction of diabetes self-control skills, the use of human insulin and insulin analogues, the use of constant subcutaneous insulin infusion and family planning allows for optimal glycemic control in early pregnancy and reduces the incidence of fetal congenital anomalies and perinatal mortality. Lifestyle optimization, weight loss, taking adequate doses of folic acid, discontinuation of teratogenic medications, and quitting smoking are essential components of preconception care. Of significant clinical value is the training of women planning pregnancy at the Diabetes school, training in self-control and insulin therapy skills, consultation with an endocrinologist, an obstetrician-gynecologist, an ophthalmologist, a nephrologist, and a nutritionist. The aim of this study was to present current data on pre-pregnancy care in patients with pregestational diabetes mellitus and to show its possibilities in reducing the frequency of obstetric and perinatal complications. We analyzed 74 domestic and foreign literature sources using the following databases: PubMed, PubMed Central, Google Scholar, and UpToDate.