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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Glucose found in my sample today and worried!!!

23 replies

juniorandjackie · 05/05/2005 22:20

Hi i saw the midwife today (i am 29 weeks pregnant)and she checked my urine sample and found glucose in it, she also measured my bump and said its slightly bigger than it should be at 29 weeks. She said i could have pregnancy diabetes and need to have other urine test done in a couple of days to be sure. can anyone help i am really worried! Is this serious?

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pupuce · 05/05/2005 22:23

You need more test to confirm... it might mean an induction if you have gestational diabetes as it makes bigger babies.
More info here : www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/gest_diabetes.htm

WigWamBam · 05/05/2005 22:23

You can ask for a Glucose Tolerance Test to put your mind at rest. I had gestational diabetes and controlled it purely by diet, I had to check my glucose levels with a pinprick five or six times a day and saw midwives/diabetes nurses every other week. At worst you will need to have insulin to treat it. Once the pregnancy is over, it will probably go away, although sometimes it doesn't, and you may be at a higher risk of diabetes in later life. Get the GTT done to put your mind at rest, though.

soapbox · 05/05/2005 22:26

You may have gestational diabetes which is diabetes which manifests itself in pregnancy.

The biggest risk is that the baby may well be bigger than normal but with good management this need not be a problem. Depending on how severe the diabetes is they may control it with diet only or with drugs (insulin).

Even if the diabetes prooves hard to manage they also have the option to induce early or deliver by CS early.

There is a small risk also after birth that your baby may need to spend a little time in special care until their blood sugar level has regulated.

I had gestational diabetes with both my pregnancies and now have 2 lovely DCs who are 5 and 6 YO now!

You will be more closely monitored if you have GS and may need to see a consultant more often as a result.

Do relax for now though - there are a few more detailed tests you will have to undergo before a definate diagnoses is made. (Glucose tolerance tests).

Hoxtonchick will hopefully also see your post - she is a bit of an expert on this topic

Good luck and enjoy the rest of your pregnancy

Original poster

juniorandjackie · 05/05/2005 22:43

Hi everyone thanks for replying so soon, didnt think i would have a response tonight! It doesnt sound to good though does it? Im really worried i have it. I know it sounds really wimpy but i hate the site of blood and to have to pinprick my finger everyday would kill me, dont get me wrong i would do anything for my baby but i really cant stand the site of blood or injecting myself with insulin.

OP posts:

WigWamBam · 05/05/2005 22:45

Don't worry about having to test yourself, it's not as bad as you think it might be! Get the GTT done, you won't know until you get that done whether there is anything to worry about yet.

HandbagAddiction · 06/05/2005 13:14

Juniorandjackie, as others have said until you have the GTT you will not know. There is quite a low threshold value placed on the glucose level in blood - so low that it can often mean that people who do not have Gest. Diabetes will sometimes show up to have an above normal glucose level in their blood. Myself included - and with hindsight I can put it down to the 2 kitkats I scoffed at speed in advnace of my midwife appointment because I was starving and needed food and that was the only thing available!!

Anyway- getting to the point - clearly it needs to be checked. Apart from not being the most pleasurable experience, you should definitely do the GTT. If you're clear, then great, if you're not then as the other posters have said, it can be managed effectively. But main thing is....please don't worry....you have the GTT to work out if you have got Gest. Diabities and not because you already have!

shhhh · 06/05/2005 13:56

J&J I wouldn't worry to much at the moment, wait until the next urine test and then go from there. I was booked in for a GTT test quite early on in my pregnancy due to family history although the test wasn't planned until I was about 28 wk (i think), a few weeks prior to the test gloucose was also found in my urine but I was just monitored as the GTT was coming up within wks.
Basically touch wood all has been ok with my following urine tests and the GTT was also clear. BTW I was also advised prior to the GTT test that I was measuring about 2 weeks bigger than my dates which frightened me even more ! Since then dr & mw have reassured me this is because im only 4ft 11in so will measure bigger as baby has less room to stretch out ! LOL.

The GTT (if you do have it) is not bad either, I was petrified as at i'm not good at drinking liquids ie gaviscon etc so thought I would throw up but I was plased that I managed to keep it down. Just like a thicker and sweeter lemonade. HTH

Lua · 06/05/2005 14:07

J&Jm,
As others said, you need more tests to confirm if you have GD. So no reason to worry about it yet!
But just to put your mind at rest, I was diagnosed late with GD and baby is fine. I have been closely monitored, and besides the pain of the monitoring is nothing too bad.
FWIW though, I would pester them and have a GTT test done now, instead of waiting two more weeks. You don't need the stress of two weeks... and I have GD without ever having sugar in my urine. They only detected because I was too big for dates.
Good luck!

Lua · 06/05/2005 14:08

oh, and in most cases GD can be managed by diet only!

Katemum · 06/05/2005 14:22

What did you have to eat and drink prior to your sample? I had glucose show up a few times in both pregnancys. The first time was down to a bowl of frosties. After that was never sure what caused it but it wasn't diabetes in my case.

hoxtonchick · 06/05/2005 14:30

hello soapbox .

don't panic, J&J, diabetes & pregnancy, whilst not at all fun, can be well enough controlled not to present any risks to your baby. i echo other posters that you should push for a GTT asap. if you do have GD there's no point hanging around for another 2 weeks waiting to find out.

blood testing & injecting really isn't too painful (i have pre-existing diabetes & am 30 weeks pg with my second child), you just have to get into the routine. you'll have lots of support from a diabetes nurse, & will see your obstetrician more too (i haven't seen a midwife so far at all in this pregnancy....). you will also probably have regular growth scans to see how the baby is. the risk is that uncontrolled blood sugar can lead to a bigger baby. even if your baby doesn't get too big (my ds was 7lbs10, & this one is growing on the 50th centile so far), you will be induced early as the placenta is more likely to fail in women with diabetes. i was induced at 39 weeks with ds & am expecting the same again. you will not necessarily need a section. is this your first baby? if not, how big have others been?

there's lots of info on here if you search the archives. or try the diabetes uk website . just ask with any more questions.

hth.

Lua · 06/05/2005 15:05

Hi Hoxtonchick, hope I am not highjacking the thread... but I am currently 37 weeks pregnant and with growth scans showing a baby on the 80% centile. Still, drs say there is no need for induction... I am happy they are not pushing me for an induction... but from what you've been told is it safe to go beyond term?

hoxtonchick · 06/05/2005 15:20

hi lua, i would definitely not want to go beyond term in your case. i'm really surprised your consultant isn't more keen on induction or a section. my consultant assured me they induced at 37 or 39 weeks for everyone. not entirely sure this applies to GD too, but i should think so. will have a look on the web for some refs for you.

hoxtonchick · 06/05/2005 15:36

hmmm, here's one which though it doesn't actually endorse induction does say it won't do any harm. have you asked what the hospital's policy is lua?

99redballoons · 06/05/2005 17:50

Same as katemum for me, it showed in my test once, but it was down to a donut binge one hot summer weekend. The boys were doing some diy and I got some in... unfortunately I ate four (!!) that day. So have a think about what you're eating. It may be as simple as that. But as the others say, gest diab can be controlled.

Original poster

juniorandjackie · 06/05/2005 23:27

Hi all, thank you all for responding, i only had a piece of toast and a bag of crisps about an hour and a half before my test so that wouldnt have affected my sample would it? This is my first baby so it all new to me and scary. What exactly is this GTT test? What do they do to you? Alot of you are saying its not pleasurable and its not very nice? What will i have to go through?

OP posts:

ghosty · 07/05/2005 01:52

I had a GTT test because DD was so huge ...
IIRC I had to have a blood test ... then drink a glass of a really sweet glucose drink and have another blood test, then wait half an hour and have another blood test. It wasn't a problem ... just a bit boring ... I asked if I could walk around the shops but I wasn't allowed to as exercise would affect the result. So I sat and wrote my christmas cards instead.
HTH ...

shhhh · 08/05/2005 16:16

In my experience I was in hospital for about 9am where I was given a blood test, I was then given a medicine type drink that I had to drink within 15 mins.... The drink was my worse fear but wasn't that bad. Tasted like a really sugary drink and was probably the same consistancy (?) as medicine. I thought this would come back up as (like I advised previously) i'm not good at liquid medicines but to my surprise it stayed down. I think you are best to not think about what you have drunk.!
I then had to sit at the hospital for around 3 hours when another blood test was taken. They are not keen on you moving about incase you become ill or feint esp as you need to starve yourself from the night before. Not easy when preg !!
I was then free to go and await my results in a few days.

For someone who is v soft like me to take this test and to have no problems then it can't be that bad ! But suppose everyone is different.

Like others have said, at the end of the day if you have to do it then it's for the good of your and your baby's health and needs to be done.

Original poster

juniorandjackie · 08/05/2005 20:11

Thanks for explaining what its all about, it will now give me some idea what to expect. X

OP posts:

jane313 · 08/05/2005 20:41

They used lucozade at my hospital for the GTT so the only unpleasurable thing (if you don't mind lucozade) was not being able to eat for a few hrs and I was starving all the time!

jane313 · 08/05/2005 20:43

No one told us not to move around either but as they had these fab chairs that reclined and foot rests came up I was not about to move anyway.

shhhh · 08/05/2005 21:11

jane313 I had the same luxary !! Also had philip and Fern to watch on This Morning which was even better

jane313 · 08/05/2005 21:22

ooh tv too. I just had a book but was constantly distracted by listening in on all the other pregnant women in there.

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