Effect of Maternal Birthplace on Gestational Diabetes Prevalence in Hispanic Women in Colorado

Objectives: Aims of this study were to: a) examine gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) prevalence time trends in Hispanic women born in Mexico and the United States (US) with US born infants and b) determine the effect of maternal birthplace on GDM prevalence. Study Design: Retrospective Cohort Methods: Birth certificate data for live births to white, Hispanic mothers in Colorado, US, were used to estimate a) the prevalence of and trends for GDM in Hispanic women, according to place of birth from 1995-2004 and b) the association between GDM and maternal birthplace using multiple logistic regression. Results: In a cohort of 154 957 singleton births to Hispanic women, the prevalence of GDM increased in Hispanic women born in the US from 1.77% in 1995 to 2.53% in 2004, p<0.0001 and in Mexico from 2.38% to 3.08%, p<0.0001. Over the study period, Hispanic women born in Mexico had 30% higher odds for developing GDM than Hispanic women born in the U.S (p< 0.0001). However, after adjusting for older maternal age and lower maternal education in the Mexico-born group, there were no GDM risk differences by native country. Conclusions: Our data show an increasing prevalence of GDM over the last decade in both Mexico-born and US-born Hispanic women living in Colorado. Mexico-born immigrant women may be at increased risk for GDM compared with their native counterparts. Lower education attainment, possibly marking lower socio-economic status, is an important determinant of this disease differential.