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Gestational Diabetes Mellitus; Resource Utilization and Costs of Diagnosis and Treatment
Author(s) -
Moses R.,
Fulwood S.,
Griffiths R.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of obstetrics and gynaecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.734
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1479-828X
pISSN - 0004-8666
DOI - 10.1111/j.1479-828x.1997.tb02250.x
Subject(s) - gestational diabetes , medicine , diabetes mellitus , obstetrics , resource use , pregnancy , pediatrics , gestation , endocrinology , genetics , natural resource economics , economics , biology
Summary: The recommendation to test every woman for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) has a defined cost. The management of women diagnosed with GDM will use additional health resources. This study examines the cost and resource utilization of a consecutive group of women diagnosed over a 1‐year period. The cost of testing a woman for GDM is around $10.00 with slight variations depending on the testing procedure. The annual cost of testing in NSW would be less than 1 million dollars. Women diagnosed with GDM used the resources of a diabetes education centre for an average of 2.8 hours and attended for 3.4 (2.3) medical visits. Insulin was required by 18.7% of the women for 9.7 (4.7) weeks using 47.7 (21.2) units each day. Testing women for GDM is a low‐cost item. Managing a woman diagnosed with GDM may cost several hundred dollars. Cost reductions could be made by reducing the amount of insulin used and by avoiding hospitalization.