Gestational Glucose Tolerance - 3 Test

The gestational glucose test is prescribed to pregnant women in their 24th week of pregnancy. It is conducted to analyse the rate at which the body is processing sugar. A high blood sugar concentration during pregnancy is indicative of Gestational Diabetes. The diagnosis typically takes about 3 to 4 hours. Though fairly common among pregnant women, Gestational Diabetes may cause pregnancy complications and must be treated at the earliest.

The following points must be taken care of if the patient has been prescribed a Glucose Tolerance Test: Eat normal diet a day prior to the test. Don't eat, drink or exercise 8-12 hours before the test. Starting 8-12 hours before the test till it is finished, the patient must not eat or drink anything except water. The patient will have to wait in the clinic until the test is completed (about 4hours) The patient may need to provide a urine sample as well.

The normal blood sugar levels of each sample is: Sample 1: 95 mg/l Sample 2: 180 mg/l Sample 3: 155 mg/l Sample 4: 140 mg/l If two out of four of these samples are above the normal limit, the patient is diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes.

A little longer than most tests, the procedure is as follows: At the beginning, a blood sample (sample 1) will be drawn from the patient. The blood sugar level in sample 1 is the Baseline Level. The patient will be given a solution with 75gm of sugar. After 1 hour, a second blood sample (sample 2) will be drawn. After another hour (2 hours), another sample (sample 3) will be drawn. The patient will be asked to drink a solution with 100gm of sugar. After another hour (3 hours), sample 4 will be drawn from the blood. All 4 samples will be tested for blood sugar levels.