Diabetes mellitus in pregnancy increases the risk of birth defects of newborns

Sep 29, 2026

Editorial discussion on how gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and overt diabetes mellitus during pregnancy affect neonatal outcomes, emphasizing birth defects risk. It summarizes the evidence from a 5-year nationwide population-based cohort in Taiwan, comparing mothers with and without diabetes and analyzing duration-specific type 2 diabetes effects. Reported findings indicate higher risks for multiple organ-system birth defects, with particularly elevated risks in type 1 diabetes for skull-and-neck and respiratory outcomes.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages3

Reading Time8 min

AccessFree to download

Editorial

Scope and rationale

Key findings from Taiwan cohort study

Type-specific risk patterns and duration effects

Context of incidence trends (2010–2014)

J Chin MedAssoc Editorial Diabetes mellitus in pregnancy increases the risk of birth defects of newborns Wen-Ling Leea,b,c, Fa-Kung Leed, Peng-Hui Wangb,e,f,* aDepartment of Medicine, Cheng-Hsin General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; bInstitute of Clinical Medicine, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; cDepartment of Nursing, Oriental Institute of Technology, New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC; dDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cathy General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; eDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; fFemale Cancer Foundation, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and overt diabetes mellitus (DM), including type I DM (T1DM) and type 2 DM (T2DM), belonging to one type of metabolic syndromes/diseases are complex but common diseases, with a continuously and rapidly growing prevalence worldwide, involving not only in general health of women themselves but also in association with worse outcomes of their offsprings.1–6 Despite much understanding of the pathophysiology of DM or GDM, availability of significantly effective and powerful screening tests, and awareness of modified health behaviors and continuously far-advanced development of antidiabetes agents (ADAs), management of women with DM or GDM during reproductive age is still a biggest challenge in modern obstetrics, partly because many women are unaware of their DM status until their first antenatal medical examination and partly because fewer than one-third of reproductive-aged women have been successfully or actively receive adequate and appropriate preconception care.2,3,5 Preconception counseling is highly recommended by the obstetric experts and academic societies to avoid unintended pregnancy with abnormal glucose levels (particular abnormal glycosylated hemoglobin [hemoglobin A1c, HbA1c] levels), based on the facts observing the high possibility of severe damage of early embryonic development and significant increase of hazards to fetus and pregnancy outcomes secondary to hyperglycemia during pregnancy.5 All of them not only result in national and financial embarrassment but also influence the willingness and anxiety about the next pregnancy in reproductive-age women.6 The recent publication in the June issue of the Journal of the Chinese Medical Association entitled “Maternal diabetes mellitus and birth defects in Taiwan: A 5-year nationwide population-based cohort study” attempted to investigate the association between maternal DM and GDM * Address correspondence. Dr. Peng-Hui Wang, Department of Obstetricsand Gynecology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, 201, Section 2, Shi-Pai Road, Taipei 112, Taiwan, [ROC. E-mail addresses: phwang@vghtpe.gov.tw](ROC. E-mail addresses: phwang@vghtpe.gov.tw); [pongpongwang@gmail.com](pongpongwang@gmail.com) (P.-H. Wang). Conflicts of interest: Dr. Peng-Hui Wang, an editorial board member at Journal of the Chinese Medical Association, had no role in the peer review process of or decision to publish this article. The other authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest related to the subject matter or materials discussed in this article. Journal of Chinese Medical Association. (2023) 86: 781-783. Received June 25, 2023; accepted June 30, 2023. doi: 10. 1097/JCMA.0000000000000954. Copyright © 2023, the Chinese Medical Association. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ([http://creativecommons.org/licenses/](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/)[ ](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/)[by-nc-nd/4.0/](by-nc-nd/4.0/)) and the risk of birth defects (BDs) in Taiwan, since BDs are the main causes of morbidity and mortality of fetus and newborns.7 The authors conducted a 5-year nationwide population-based cohort study, including 24 204 newborns with BDs, and 854 519 newborns without BDs to compare their maternal background, which focused on the presence and absence of DM a

FAQs

What is the document’s main focus regarding diabetes during pregnancy?

It focuses on the association between maternal diabetes (including GDM and overt diabetes) and the risk of birth defects in newborns.

What type of evidence does the editorial summarize?

It summarizes a 5-year nationwide population-based cohort study in Taiwan that compares infants with and without birth defects based on maternal diabetes status.

Which diabetes types are linked to higher birth-defect risks in the findings described?

The editorial reports higher risks across organ-system categories for mothers with type 2 diabetes and particularly elevated risks for type 1 diabetes for skull-and-neck and respiratory system-related birth defects.

Sep 29, 2026

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