How diabetes medicines during pregnancy affect long-term health of moms and children
Comparing the effects of pharmacological treatment for gestational diabetes on long-term maternal and child health outcomes
This project follows mothers treated with insulin, metformin, or glyburide for gestational diabetes and their children to track health outcomes over many years.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Kaiser Foundation Research Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Oakland, UNITED STATES) |
| Project ID | NIH-11237624 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You and your child would be followed using electronic health records from Kaiser Permanente to see which medicine was used during pregnancy and what health issues appear later. The team will include pregnancies from 2008–2021 and track families for up to 18 years after delivery. They will compare groups who started insulin, metformin, or glyburide after diet changes, using advanced statistical methods to mimic randomized trials. The large, diverse group (over 44,000 pregnancies) takes advantage of real-world changes in prescribing to learn about long-term risks.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People diagnosed with gestational diabetes who required medication (insulin, metformin, or glyburide) during pregnancy would be the ideal candidates represented in this work.
Not a fit: People whose gestational diabetes was managed without medication, those with preexisting type 1 or type 2 diabetes, or those not covered by Kaiser Permanente during 2008–2021 would not be included and may not directly benefit from the results.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Results could help doctors pick the medicine during pregnancy that best lowers long-term risks of diabetes for mothers and obesity or heart problems for children.
How similar studies have performed: Short-term trials and smaller studies have compared these drugs in pregnancy, but large long-term evidence on maternal and child outcomes is limited, so this long EHR-based approach is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
Oakland, UNITED STATES
- Kaiser Foundation Research Institute — Oakland, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hedderson, Monique Marie — Kaiser Foundation Research Institute
- Study coordinator: Hedderson, Monique Marie
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.