Prevalence of Diabetes and Regional Differences in Chinese Women Planning Pregnancy: A Nationwide Population-Based Cross-sectional Study

Diabetes is closely linked with women’s health, and the Endocrine Society recommends that preconception consulting is provided to all women with diabetes who are considering pregnancy (1). However, the prevalence of hyperglycemia in this population is unknown and identifying diabetes before conception remains a challenge. Risk factor–based screening for type 2 diabetes (including in those of advanced age, who are overweight or obese, and with a family history of type 2 diabetes) in adults is recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (2). The occurrence of diabetes is rising in China, where the prevalence of diabetes rose from 2.5% in 1994 to 9.7–11.6% in 2014. We hypothesized that there is a substantial prevalence of hyperglycemia (diabetes and prediabetes), with regional differences, in preconceptional women in China. To address this hypothesis, we analyzed data from the National Free Preconception Health Examination Project (NFPHEP) to quantify hyperglycemia among women with conception intention in China and to determine a more appropriate, tailored screening strategy in this population. A population-based, cross-sectional, fasting plasma glucose (FPG) survey of the hyperglycemia rate and its distribution among women planning pregnancy was performed using NFPHEP …