In plain words
An oral glucose tolerance test measures how well the body handles sugar. The mother fasts overnight. Blood is drawn. She then drinks a sweet liquid with a set amount of glucose. Blood is drawn again at set times over one to three hours. The test is usually done after a first screening test that was positive, between about 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy. Results are compared with set thresholds. Two or more high values can suggest . The test is one step in a process. A provider explains the results and what they mean for the pregnancy. Mothers may find the drink very sweet, and some feel queasy during the wait.
The deeper version
The 100-gram three-hour oral glucose tolerance test is the diagnostic step after a positive 50-gram screen at 24 to 28 weeks. ACOG Practice Bulletin 190 (2018) describes the screen and the diagnostic thresholds. thresholds (1982) are fasting 95, one-hour 180, two-hour 155, and three-hour 140 milligrams per deciliter, and National Diabetes Data Group thresholds are also used; two or more abnormal values are diagnostic. Thresholds differ by practice and population, and the International Association of Diabetes and Pregnancy Study Groups (2010) proposed a one-step 75-gram test with lower cut-offs. Test performance is modest, and long-term outcomes of mild gestational diabetes treatment remain under study.
Where it comes up
- Gestational diabetesPregnancy: Your Body
- Eating with gestational diabetesPregnancy: Eating
- The six-week checkup (and why it isn't enough)Postpartum: Your Body
- Blood sugar, dizziness, and energy crashesPregnancy: Eating
What mothers here say about oral glucose tolerance test
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Sources
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists — Practice Bulletin 190: Gestational diabetes mellitus, 2018
- International Association of Diabetes and Pregnancy Study Groups — Recommendations on the diagnosis and classification of hyperglycemia in pregnancy, 2010