Glycated albumin (GA) helps predict pregnancy outcomes in mothers with diabetes and must be maintained at low levels to prevent complications in infants, suggests a new study published in the Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine. The study investigated the association between GA in diabetic mothers and complications in their children, and evaluated the GA cutoff values for predicting complications in infants. Seventy one diabetic mothers and their children were included in the study. Mean GA values were compared between mothers of infants with and without complications, and relationship with number of complications was analyzed by Pearsons correlation.

GA was significantly higher in mothers of children with neonatal hypoglycemia (15.8 ± 3.2 versus 12.6 ± 1.2%), respiratory disorders (15.7 ± 3.6 versus 12.9 ± 1.9%), hypocalcemia (15.9 ± 3.7 versus 13.1 ± 1.8%), polycythemia (15.7 ± 2.3 versus 13.8 ± 2.1%), myocardial hypertrophy (16.1 ± 3.7 versus 13.1 ± 2.3%), and large-for-date status (15.8 ± 2.4 versus 13.7 ± 3.1%). There was a significant positive correlation with number of complications in infants. Cut-off values were within the limits of 13.6-14.7%.