Hypertensive Disorders in Normal/Over-weight and Obese Type 2 Diabetic Pregnant Women

Background: Hypertension is one of the major complications of pregnancy. Its impact in type 2 diabetic pregnant women could be understimated because it is generally evaluated by retrospective studies and as one of the Outcome measures. Objective: Our aims were: 1) to evaluate the prevalence of hypertensive disease between type 2 diabetic and normal pregnancies; 2) to relate hypertensive disease to body weight in type 2 diabetic pregnancies; 3) to assess the impact of different types of hypertension on pregnancy Outcome in type 2 diabetic women. Study Design: Seventy-six type 2 diabetic (23 normal-weight, 26 overweight and 27 obese) and sixty normal (43, 15 and 2 respectively; x(2) 0.0001) pregnancies, matched for age and smoking habit. Hypertension was defined as >= 140/90 mmHg and classified in chronic, gestational and pre-eclampsia. Statistical Analysis: Student's t-test, x(2), simple, and/or multiple and logistic regression analysis were used when appropriate. Odds ratio was calculated for hypertension. p significant <0.05. Results: The overall prevalence of hypertension was 40.8% (18.4% chronic, 17.1% gestational and 5.3% pre-eclampsia) in type 2 diabetic pregnancies and 10% (8.3% gestational and 1.7% preeclampsia) in normal pregnancies (p<0.0001), with an odds ratio of 6.2. All the types of hypertension, significantly chronic, contributed to the higher prevalence. Only in diabetic pregnancies, hypertension was associated with a higher pregestational BMI; whenever BMI increased, chronic and gestational hypertension increased by contrast of pre-eclampsia (X(2), 0.02). Hypertensive disorders did not affect maternal-fetal outcome. Conclusions: The prevalence of hypertension was 40.8% in type 2 diabetic pregnant women whilst it was 10.0% in non diabetic controls. All hypertensive disorders, significantly chronic, were more frequent. Increasing BMI was a crucial factor for chronic and gestational but not for pre-eclampsia. Hypertensive diseases did not seem to affect pregnancy outcome.