Considering not going for diabetes test - advice

[quarantinevibes]

This is my 4th pregnancy. I’ve had the test with all my previous 3 pregnancies and haven’t had diabetes.
The midwife has told me I am high risk because I am half Asian and my dad and his mum and siblings all have diabetes.
Surely if I was going to get it in pregnancy I would have got it in the previous 3? They’ve all been pretty much back to back within 1-2 years maximum of each other.
The reason I don’t want to go is because of the coronavirus and didn’t feel comfortable at all at my hospital scan with the packed waiting room and partners/ friends accompanying patients, etc.
Would it be ok not to go? Surely they’d know if I develop it anyway will I not have a large fast growing bump and other symptoms which would suggest I’d developed it?
Feel free to tell me I need to give my head a wobble and go

I personally think you should go. You’ll be safe in antenatal and they ask everyone to sanitise before going in and staff wear masks (at our hospital anyway). You can’t guarantee that you won’t get it just because you’ve not had it before sadly . Better to be safe and go than get poorly and have to go in anyway xx

Mine was due on the 28th of April - was told it's cancelled and I'll be having an alternative blood test on the 8th of May instead.
I've heard a few others who have had theirs cancelled too, have you rang and asked if yours is still going ahead?

I would seek medical advice. If they have not cancelled the appointment it suggests it is deemed important.

You will probably find now that waiting rooms are not packed as partners not allowed attend appointments and social distancing is enforced with fewer in person appointments. Personally, I would attend.

I haven't got experience of this in particular and it's absolutely your decision, but my general advice would be not to skip any ante natal care that they are classing as essential. Anything they can they are cancelling or rescheduling so if they still want you to go for the test then they must think it's important.
Doesn't risk increase with age as well?

From a general point of view, the care taken when I've had to go in for appointments and scans has been brilliant and I've felt very safe.

You have to balance up the positives to the negatives but, if it was me, i'd still go.

You should definitely go. You're older than previous pregnancies and the non Covid areas of the hospitals are totally fine.

Thanks for the all the replies. I do agree I should go. However I went to my scan a couple of weeks ago. Medical staff were not in masks or anything the antenatal seating area was packed some people standing up walls as it was too busy to find a seat. Guy with his wife opposite me was coughing everywhere. I’m in the north west. It put me off going back

You should go if you can. I didn't have gestatational diabetes in my first pregnancy but did in my second. My son was a bit poorly with low blood sugar when he was born, which was expected and prepared for.

I think you should still go but take some hand sanitizer with you and don’t touch anything with your hands if possible , then wash thoroughly when you get home (including your clothes). It’s safer to get the test don’t just incase. I have GD and if you are diagnosed with it if you have it, at least they know to do some extra checks of the baby when it is born etc.

Wear a mask if you have one, maintain a distance in the waiting room and hand hygiene. You should go, antenatal appointments are so important.

In my trust they all wear masks, which are also given to the ladies waiting, and chairs have been removed so you're sitting at a distance from anyone else.

They've also been really fast lately for me so you don't hang about. Midwives ask you to wash your hands first and wear PPE.

They're making it as safe as possible and things change every day so your trust might've put more measures in place now.

They've also swapped the test (at my hospital anyway) from the full fasting glucose test to a random glucose blood test which takes five mins. Got the results from mine back today and negative thankfully!

Things may have changed in those couple of weeks. My hospital was empty when I went for a scant last week. Lots of staff walking aorund, but hardly any patients. Also they now do not allow anyone else but the patient in the waiting room. Ring and ask for reassurance, whatever they do may have changed since you last went.
Also, there are cases where GD is not picked up and does not give symptoms, so I would not rely on this too much. A friend found out she had it at 28 weeks and was shocked as the only 'symptoms' she had were that of a normal pregnancy.

Mine has been cancelled with an extra 2 tests that will be done along side my 28 week bloods instead x

Thank you for all the replies I will ring the ward and speak to them and see if they have put a limit to the people going in now. It just put me off as my scan wasn’t a great experience and I was waiting nearly 4 hours in a packed out area. You’ve all convinced me to attend so thank you

@Mummyspider27 ooh am really hoping they can do this for me. I am going to phone up and ask thank you

I was tested in all 3 of my pregnancies but only tested positive in pregnancy 3! I only just met the threshold for testing so not considered particularly high risk! I had to take medication for the last 10 weeks of pregnancy and insulin for the last 2 weeks! My baby was delivered 2 weeks early because he was measuring big! You should definitely go for the test!

Def go for the test. Partners aren’t allowed so the waiting room will be much more empty. Good luck. Lots of safety measures in place.

Don’t not have the test because of Covid19.

I actually refused it with my DC3. I wasn’t happy with my previous result with Dc2. The result was borderline. Not one blood sugar reading was particularly concerning. Growth was fine and I got discharged at 37wks from diabetic care. I still had to fight for my birth centre admission though.

DC3 I met the consultant really early on. 7wks I later found out from scan. Told me all about my risks. Shoulder Dystocia, diabetes like it was a fact I would have it, told me me where I would be birthing, induction likely blah blah blah. Didn’t work out to be a very productive meeting. I told him I’d follow Nice guidelines, happily take the additional scans but monitor my own bloods without the flawed diagnostic test ( that would really upset my stomach and make my sickness worse and me Ill for days - I always have sick pregnancies- this isn’t typical for most of the test). Turned out despite being a perfect tick box for the risk factors I didn’t have any issues with my bloods, or babies growth. I followed a mostly low GI diet as it’s really good for you too.

The test is the only way of managing risks.

That should say.

the test isnt the only way of managing risks.

Ask them to do a HBA1C test alongside your 28 weeks bloods instead, this is what most hospitals are now doing as an alternative to the glucose tolerance test.

Ask them to do a HBA1C test alongside your 28 weeks bloods instead

HbA1c isn’t very accurate as a test for diabetes in pregnancy so should not be used to diagnose gestational diabetes. There are various reasons why it isn’t accurate, but essentially pregnancy will give an artificially low HbA1c reading so the diagnosis might be missed.

@Nestofvipers I don’t get a choice, I have been told I will no longer be given a GD test and only be offered a random glucose and HBA1C instead... so that’s worrying if not accurate x

@Nestofvipers That’s what all the trusts local to me are now doing.

Thank you .. I will most definitely be having it. Especially as some of you have developed it after multiple pregnancies. Definitely possible then.

Just being half-Indian puts you in a high risk category. That you have close family with the diabetes puts you in the highest. Absolutely get it done.