Gestation Health Dictionary

Diabetes that develops for the first time during pregnancy, usually clearing up after delivery.

(See diabetic pregnancy.)... gestational diabetes

A rare skin disorder of pregnant women that produces crops of blisters on the legs and abdomen. The cause is not known.

Severe herpes gestationis is treated with corticosteroid drugs in tablet form and may require hospital admission.

The disorder usually clears up completely after birth of the baby, but tends to recur in subsequent pregnancies.... herpes gestationis

diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance that is diagnosed during pregnancy (see glucose tolerance test). Women at increased risk of gestational diabetes include those with a personal history of the condition, obesity, or a family history of diabetes, and those who have had a previously unexplained stillbirth. In most cases gestational diabetes resolves at the end of the pregnancy, but such women are at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes thereafter. It is treated by dietary control with or without insulin or metformin to avoid the fetal complications of *macrosomia and hypoglycaemia. See also pregestational diabetes.... gestational diabetes mellitus

(GTD) a group of disorders spanning the conditions of complete and partial molar pregnancies (see hydatidiform mole) through to the malignant conditions of invasive mole, *choriocarcinoma, and the very rare placental site trophoblastic tumour (PSTT). If there is any evidence of persistence of GTD, most commonly defined as a persistent elevation of *human chorionic gonadotrophin, the condition is described as *gestational trophoblastic neoplasia.... gestational trophoblastic disease

(GTN) a group of disorders characterized by persistence of *gestational trophoblastic disease, with abnormal placental development and very high levels of *human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG). The chorionic villi are fluid-filled with vacuolation of the placenta and destruction of the normal stroma. GTN is rare in the UK, with a calculated incidence of 1/714 live births. It may develop after a molar pregnancy (see hydatidiform mole), a nonmolar pregnancy, or a live birth. The incidence after a live birth is estimated at 1/50,000. A malignant condition may develop (see choriocarcinoma) if the abnormal tissue is not completely removed and the risk of this is monitored by the fall in hCG levels. Choriocarcinoma complicates approximately 3% of complete moles, although in 50% of cases of choriocarcinoma there is no history of immediately preceding trophoblastic disease. It may also occur following a normal pregnancy. In the UK, there is an effective registration and treatment programme. The programme has achieved impressive results, with high cure (98–100%) and low chemotherapy (5–8%) rates.... gestational trophoblastic neoplasia

(pemphigoid gestationis) a rare autoimmune condition (1 in 10,000–1 in 60,000 pregnancies) that usually starts in the second trimester with itching preceding a widespread *polymorphic eruption with vesicles and blisters. It is associated with *intrauterine growth restriction and preterm delivery.... pemphigoid gestationalis

(SGA) describing a fetus or baby that has failed to reach the size or birth weight expected for its gestational age. This may be because the fetus or baby is constitutionally small or it may be due to *intrauterine growth restriction in the fetus. In the latter case, the perinatal outcome is less favourable.... small for gestational age