Glycosylated serum proteins and glycosylated haemoglobin in normal pregnancy

Abstract

Glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1) and glycosylated serum protein concentrations (fructosamine) were monitored in 162 normal pregnancies. The response to the standard 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was used to exclude gestational diabetes. A significant increase in glucose intolerance, measured from the area under the OGTT-curve (r = 0.29, P < 0.0005) and a highly significant decrease in serum albumin concentration (r = -0.79, P < 0.0005) due to the redistribution of body water, as occurs during pregnancy, resulted in a statistically significant decrease in serum fructosamine concentration (r = -0.23, P < 0.01) when related to gestational age in weeks.