Accuracy of screening tests for gestational diabetes mellitus in Southeast Asia: A systematic review of diagnostic test accuracy studies

Abstract

Background:To investigate the accuracy of screening tests for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in Southeast Asian pregnant women.Methods:We searched PubMed (MEDLINE), Web of Science, Cochrane Library, ClinicalTrials.gov, Google Scholar, and Google for relevant articles published in English up to November 2018 using search terms related to GDM, screening tests for GDM and diagnostic performance. The studies were independently screened and selected by both authors. The methodological quality of the included studies was independently assessed by quality assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies 2. A hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic (HSROC) model was created to estimate the HSROC curve. The summary sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, and diagnostic odds ratio were calculated in a meta-analysis using bivariate random-effects model.Results:A total of 19 studies were included in which the 100g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and 75g OGTT were the two common reference standards for diagnosis of GDM. Most points of diagnostic performance in the HSROC 50g GCT curve compared with the 100g OGTT reference standard were clustered in the upper left-hand quadrant. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of the 50g GCT were 79% (95% confidence interval [CI] 64%-89%) and 74% (95% CI 59%-85%), respectively. For the 75g OGTT reference standard, the non-fasting 2-hour plasma glucose showed quite similar sensitivity the 50g GCT compared with the 100g OGTT reference standard. The pooled sensitivities and specificities of the fasting plasma glucose and hemoglobin A1c were 81% (95% CI 76%-86%) and 70% (95% CI 67%-72%), and 80% (95% CI 66%-90%) and 69% (95% CI 58%-78%), respectively.Conclusion:Our findings indicate that the 50g GCT using the threshold of 140mg/dL is a good screening test for identifying GDM at 24 to 28 weeks' gestational age for both high-risk and universal screening strategies in Southeast Asian countries. The non-fasting 2-hour PG, fasting plasma glucose or hemoglobin A1c are alternative choices for screening.