USPSTF Concludes Current Evidence Is Insufficient to Screen for Gestational Diabetes

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has been releasing new and updated guidelines periodically. The USPSTF grades each of its recommendations according to a system described on the USPSTF website.

In a new guideline, the USPSTF finds insufficient evidence to screen for gestational diabetes. No randomized trials of screening and subsequent treatment were identified, and no studies of the accuracy of screening tests met minimal methodological inclusion criteria for review. Several studies, in which the benefits and harms of treating gestational diabetes were addressed, were identified. In one randomized trial, treatment of screen-identified mild gestational diabetes was associated with less gestational hypertension and fewer serio…