New GDM diagnosis recommendations welcomed

New recommendations from the Australasian Diabetes in Pregnancy Society (ADIPS), which update the way gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is diagnosed, have been published in the Medical Journal of Australia.

The updated guidelines recommend higher blood glucose thresholds for diagnosing GDM and introduce more tailored screening for women with known risk factors early in pregnancy. These evidence-based changes, ADIPS said, aim to ensure women and their babies receive appropriate care without over-medicalising pregnancies where the risk of complications is low.

The new recommendations were welcomed by Australia’s peak diabetes organisations — Diabetes Australia, the Australian Diabetes Society and the Australian Diabetes Educators Association — who, in a joint statement with ADIPS, supported the changes; as have “other peak health bodies, reflecting broad consensus across diabetes management”, according to the joint statement.

“For the first time, Australia’s leading experts in GDM including general practitioners, obstetricians, midwives, diabetes clinicians and pathologists, have united behind a national approach to improve the consistency and clarity of GDM diagnosis,” the statement read. “This collaboration marks a significant milestone in maternal health and diabetes care.”

In Australia, more than 280,000 women give birth each year, and GDM affects almost one in five pregnancies. Appropriate diagnosis and treatment are critical in reducing the risk of complications during pregnancy and birth, and in helping women avoid long-term health issues such as type 2 diabetes.

“It’s critically important that every woman who develops GDM is identified and supported with the care she needs. These updated guidelines will facilitate that goal by focusing healthcare resources where they can make the biggest difference on women and babies most at risk,” the joint statement said.

“The recommendations follow a decade of evolving research and reflect the lived experience of women who have had GDM, alongside the clinical insights of the country’s leading diabetes and maternity care professionals.”

Implementation of the new recommendations is now being rolled out across hospitals and primary care settings.

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‘Australasian Diabetes in Pregnancy Society (ADIPS) 2025 consensus recommendations for the screening, diagnosis and classification of gestational diabetes’ has been published open access in the Medical Journal of Australia and you can read it at doi.org/10.5694/mja2.52696.

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