Scandinavian journal of clinical and laboratory investigation
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Scand. J. Clin. Lab. Invest. · Jul 2016
Clinical TrialElevated glucose levels in early puerperium, and association with high cortisol levels during parturition.
Background Gestational diabetes is one of the commonest metabolic problems associated with pregnancy and an accurate diagnosis is critical for the care. Research has shown that pregnant women have high levels of cortisol during the last stage of parturition. As cortisol is a diabetogenic hormone causing increased glucose levels, we wanted to study the association between cortisol and glucose levels during parturition. ⋯ After parturition the glucose concentrations decreased gradually. There were significant Spearman rank correlations between glucose and cortisol values. Conclusions The changes associated with birth cause significant elevations of cortisol and glucose around parturition.