ABSTRACT
The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus [GDM] and impaired glucose tolerance [IGT] in pregnant Sudanese women in the third trimester. The study was carried out on hundred pregnant women in the third trimester. The prevalence of GDM was 2% and it was 6% for the IGT whereas, 92% of the pregnant women [considered as a control group], revealed normal fasting plasma levels. The IGT pregnant women were older than those control pregnant women but, the age difference was not significant [28.7 +/- 5.5 years mean [S.D] vs. 27.3 +/- 4.8 respectively, p>0.05]. Also, the IGT pregnant women were found to have mean parity significantly greater than that of the control group [6.7 +/- 2, mean [S.D.] vs. 3.9 +/- 2.1 respectively, p<0.001]. Then, it was concluded that prevalence of GDM and IGT in Sudanese pregnant women is within the universal estimates and parity is a very important risk factor that affects impaired glucose tolerance prevalence in pregnancy