Long-Term Metabolic Outcomes after Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM): Results from the Odense GDM Follow-Up Study (OGFUS).

Aims: To compare metabolic profiles and the long-term risk of metabolic dysfunction between women with previous gestational diabetes mellitus (pGDM) and women without pGDM (non-GDM) matched on age, prepregnancy body mass index (BMI), and parity. Methods: In total, 128 women with pGDM (median follow-up: 7.8 years) and 70 non-GDM controls (median follow-up: 10.0 years) completed a 2 h oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) with assessment of glucose, C-peptide, insulin, and other metabolic measures. Additionally, anthropometrics, fat mass, and blood pressure were assessed and indices of insulin sensitivity and beta cell function were calculated. Results: The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) was significantly higher in the pGDM group compared to the non-GDM group (26% vs. 0%). For women with pGDM, the prevalence of prediabetes (38%) and the metabolic syndrome (MetS) (59%) were approximately 3-fold higher than in non-GDM women (p's < 0.001). Both insulin sensitivity and beta cell function were significantly reduced in pGDM women compared to non-GDM women. Conclusion: Despite similar BMI, women with pGDM had a substantially higher risk of developing T2DM, prediabetes, and the MetS compared to controls. Both beta cell dysfunction and reduced insulin sensitivity seem to contribute to this increased risk.

Solo Mothers After Assisted Conception and Their Experiences with Postnatal Care.

PURPOSE: To explore solo mothers' postnatal caring experiences. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A qualitative interview study including nine solo mothers living in six different counties in Norway. The mothers had a total of twelve children conceived through assisted fertilization and donor sperm. Systematic text condensation was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: The first theme described how the decision to be a solo mother entailed responsibility and rendered solo mothers vulnerable. Secondly, it was valuable, but sometimes surprising, to be met with care and interest, but, and finally, bending standard rules and regulation of the postnatal ward proved necessary to fit the needs of solo mothers. CONCLUSION: Solo mothers see themselves as different from other mothers, and the results of this study underline that solo mothers' individual needs are not always met in postnatal care.

Bone outcomes and technical measurement issues of bone health among children and adolescents: considerations for nutrition and physical activity intervention trials.

Weight-bearing physical activity and calcium intake are two important behavioral influences for bone health. Physical-activity and calcium-intake intervention trials with youth have been implemented to evaluate their efficacy and effectiveness to decrease the risk for subsequent osteoporosis and fractures. Technical aspects of bone measurement have not been routinely reported in published trials of youth, even though they can have an impact on study findings and interpretation. This paper provides an overview of the outcome variables reported, and technical issues--such as software and bone detection, growth, and movement--that affect bone mass measurements among children and adolescents. It describes the implications of these issues for the interpretation of intervention effects observed in intervention trials, and provides recommendations for future research.