The key difference between gestational diabetes and diabetes mellitus is that gestational diabetes is a high blood sugar condition experienced by pregnant women, while diabetes mellitus is a group of endocrine diseases characterized by high blood sugar caused by the lack of insulin-secreting beta cells due to autoimmune response, an imbalance between blood sugar level and insulin production, or pregnancy issues.
Diabetes or diabetes mellitus refers to a group of endocrine diseases mainly categorized into three types: type I, type II diabetes, and gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is very similar to type II diabetes. Moreover, gestational diabetes is also a form of diabetes mellitus. Therefore, gestational diabetes and diabetes mellitus are two related conditions that cause high blood sugar.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Gestational Diabetes
3. What is Diabetes Mellitus
4. Similarities – Gestational Diabetes and Diabetes Mellitus
5. Gestational Diabetes vs Diabetes Mellitus in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Gestational Diabetes vs Diabetes Mellitus
What is Gestational Diabetes?
Gestational diabetes is a condition where pregnant women develop high blood sugar due to their bodies not being able to make and use insulin properly during pregnancy. It can happen in any stage of pregnancy, but it is more common in the second or third trimester. The symptoms of gestational diabetes include increased thirst, needing to pee more often, a dry mouth, tiredness or fatigue, blurred vision, and genital itchiness or thrush.
Gestational diabetes happens due to changes in hormone levels during pregnancy. The risk factors for this condition include being overweight, not being physically active, having prediabetes, having diabetes in earlier pregnancies, polycystic ovary syndrome, having a family member with diabetes, and certain races (Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and Asian American). The complications of this condition are the baby growing larger than usual, polyhydramnios, premature birth, preeclampsia, baby developing jaundice, and stillbirth (rarely).
Gestational diabetes can be diagnosed through an initial glucose challenge test and a follow-up glucose tolerance test. Furthermore, the treatment options for gestational diabetes include lifestyle changes (healthy diet and staying active) and medication such as insulin injections or oral insulin tablets.
What is Diabetes Mellitus?
Diabetes mellitus is a group of endocrine diseases characterized by high blood sugar caused by the lack of insulin-secreting beta cells due to autoimmune responses, an imbalance between blood sugar level and insulin production, or pregnancy issues. The symptoms of this condition include feeling more thirsty, urinating often, unintentional weight loss, presence of ketones in the urine, tiredness or fatigue, feeling irritability, blurry vision, slow healing sores, and getting a lot of infections. Diabetes mellitus is caused by a combination of genetic or environmental factors.
The risk factors for diabetes mellitus include family history, race and ethnicity (Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and Asian American), and overweight. The complications of this condition are cardiovascular disease, diabetic neuropathy, kidney damage, eye damage, foot damage, skin and mouth conditions, hearing impairment, Alzheimer’s disease, and depression.
Moreover, diabetes mellitus can be diagnosed through an A1C test, random blood sugar test, fasting blood sugar test, and glucose tolerance test. Furthermore, treatment options for diabetes mellitus include healthy eating, physical activity, insulin therapy, oral and other drugs that trigger the release of insulin more from the pancreas, transplantation of the pancreas, and bariatric surgery.
What are the Similarities Between Gestational Diabetes and Diabetes Mellitus?
- Gestational diabetes and diabetes mellitus are two related conditions that cause high blood sugar.
- Gestational diabetes is also a form of diabetes mellitus.
- Both conditions are predominantly seen in Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and Asian American races and ethnicities.
- Both conditions may have similar symptoms, such as thirst, needing to pee more, tiredness, blurred vision, etc.
- Both conditions can be diagnosed through blood sugar tests.
- They can be treated through insulin therapy.
What is the Difference Between Gestational Diabetes and Diabetes Mellitus?
Gestational diabetes is a condition where pregnant women develop high blood sugar due to their body not being able to make and use insulin properly during pregnancy, while diabetes mellitus is a group of endocrine diseases characterized by high blood sugar caused by the lack of insulin-secreting beta cells due to autoimmune response, an imbalance between blood sugar level and insulin production, or pregnancy issues. Thus, this is the key difference between gestational diabetes and diabetes mellitus. Furthermore, gestational diabetes predominantly affects pregnant women, while diabetes mellitus affects people of all ages.
The below infographic presents the differences between gestational diabetes and diabetes mellitus in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.
Summary – Gestational Diabetes vs Diabetes Mellitus
Gestational diabetes is also a form of diabetes mellitus. It is characterized by high blood sugar levels. Both conditions are predominantly seen in Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and Asian American races and ethnicities. Gestational diabetes is a condition where pregnant women develop high blood sugar due to their body not being able to make and use insulin properly during pregnancy, while diabetes mellitus is a group of endocrine diseases characterized by high blood sugar caused by the lack of insulin-secreting beta cells due to autoimmune response, an imbalance between blood sugar level and insulin production or pregnancy issues. So, this is the key difference between gestational diabetes and diabetes mellitus.
Reference:
1. “Gestational Diabetes.”NHS Choices, NHS.
2. “Diabetes.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Pregnant woman holds her belly in autumn colors outdoors.” (Public Domain) via Raw Pixel
2. “3D medical animation still of Type One Diabetes” By Scientific Animations (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia