Effect of treatment of gestational diabetes on obesity in the next generation.

Participants were 199 mothers who participated in a randomized controlled trial of treatment of mild GDM during pregnancy and their children, among whom trained nurses measured their height and weight at pre-school visits in a state-wide surveillance program in the state of South Australia. The main outcome measure was age- and sex-specific BMI z-score based on standards of the International Obesity Task Force. Results. At birth, prevalence of macrosomia (birth weight >/= 4000 g) was 5.3% among the 94 children whose mothers were in the intervention group, and 21.9% among the 105 in the routine care control group. At 4-5 years, mean (SD) BMI z-score was 0.49 (1.20) in intervention children and 0.41 (1.40) among controls. The difference between treatment groups was 0.08 (95% confidence interval -0.29, 0.44), an estimate minimally changed by adjustment for maternal race, parity, age, and socio-economic index (0.08 [95% CI -0.29, 0.45]). Evaluating BMI >/= 85(th) percentile rather than continuous BMI z-score gave similarly null results. Conclusion. Although treatment of GDM substantially reduced macrosomia at birth, it did not result in a change in BMI at age 4-5 years.