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Exploring the Long Term health outcomes of a Pregnancy with gestational Diabetes (ELOPE-GDM)

Status

Ongoing

Title

Exploring the Long Term health outcomes of a Pregnancy with gestational Diabetes (ELOPE-GDM)

What is the aim of the study and why is it important?

Gestational diabetes (GDM) is a form of diabetes that affects pregnant women. It usually goes away after giving birth. Developing GDM increases the risk of problems during pregnancy and birth, and there is evidence that women who develop GDM are at much higher risk of developing conditions like type 2 diabetes later in life. However, the long term effects of developing GDM on other conditions, as well as on the health of the baby have not been widely investigated.

The aim of this study is to use routine healthcare records to identify what the effects are of developing GDM on health and disease risks in mothers and their babies.

Insight into the full effects that GDM has on women and their babies will provide a boost to research efforts for the early detection, prevention and treatment of GDM.

How is the research being done?

The maternal cohort will include women of all ages between 2000 and 2020. Women who have had at least one pregnancy affected by GDM will be index cases, and for each of these index cases we will identify up to four women of similar age who had a pregnancy at a similar time but who were not diagnosed with GDM to act as controls. We will compare disease incidence between the index cases and controls in order to determine whether being diagnosed with GDM affects the long term health risk to mothers.

The infant cohort will include infants and children of all ages between 2000 and 2020. Children whose mother had a diagnosis of GDM during pregnancy will be index cases, for each of these index cases we will identify up to four infants of similar age but whose mother did not receive a diagnosis of GDM. We will compare disease incidence between the index cases and control cases in order to determine whether having a mother diagnosed with GDM affects the long term health risks to infants.

Chief Investigator

Dr Nerys Astbury, University of Oxford

Lead Applicant Organisation Name

Sponsor

University of Oxford

Location of research

University of Oxford

Date on which research approved

08-Feb-2021

Project reference ID

OX128

Generic ethics approval reference

18/EM/0400

Are all data accessed are in anonymised form?

Yes

Brief summary of the dataset to be released (including any sensitive data)

We will collect data from GP records on disease diagnoses and healthcare usage as well as linked data from hospital episode admissions, cancer registry and mortality.

Implications and Impact

The study will:
• Determine if receiving a diagnosis of GDM during pregnancy affects the future long term risk of disease for mothers and their infants
• Explore the risk factors that can predict the development of GDM in mothers
• Explore factors that predict the development of other diseases following exposure to GDM in mothers and infants
• Calculate whether healthcare service usage differs between those who have been exposed to GDM

A better understaning of the longer-term implications of GDM will assist the development of more effective prevention and treatment strategies.

Funding Source

NIHR Biomedical Research Centre Oxford

Public Benefit Statement

Research Team

Prof Julia Hippisley-Cox, University of Oxford

Prof Carol Coupland, University of Nottingham

Dr Lucy Makillop, University of Oxford

Dr Jane Hirst, University of Oxford

Mrs Amy Wire, Patient & Public co-investigator

Access Type

Trusted Research Environment (TRE)

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