Effect of prenatal counseling on postpartum follow-up and contraceptive use in women with gestational diabetes mellitus: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Postpartum visit attendance for glucose screening and uptake of effective contraception is crucial after a pregnancy with gestational diabetes mellitus. Although postpartum women with recent gestational diabetes mellitus are generally advised in the early postnatal period to attend postpartum visits, data have shown suboptimal rates of postpartum glucose testing and of highly effective contraceptive use among these women. Compared with the early postnatal period, the antenatal period is when women and healthcare providers have more contact. This may facilitate a better relationship between the pregnant woman and her healthcare providers, thereby improving the women's trust in the providers' counseling.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate if adding prenatal counseling to routine, early-postnatal counseling increases the rates of glucose screening and contraceptive use by 6 weeks postpartum among pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus.

Study Design: A randomized controlled trial of 280 women diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus was conducted. Participants were randomly allocated (1:1, stratified using a permuted block method) to the intervention group (receiving prenatal counseling at 35-36 weeks of gestation plus routine, early-postnatal counseling) or the control group (receiving only routine, early-postnatal counseling). The 2 primary outcomes were glucose screening and highly effective contraceptive uptake by 6 weeks postpartum. The secondary outcome was the use of any contraceptive by 6 weeks postpartum. Data were analyzed according to the intention-to-treat principle.

Results: The rate of postpartum glucose screening was 86.4% (121/140) in the intervention group, which was significantly higher than the rate of 50.7% (71/140) in the control group (adjusted relative risk, 1.70; 95% confidence interval, 1.27-2.28). The uptake of highly effective contraceptive methods was increased in the intervention group when compared with the control group (59.3% vs 30.7%; adjusted relative risk, 1.90; 95% confidence interval, 1.31-2.74). The uptake of any contraceptive method by 6 weeks postpartum was reported by 122 of 140 participants (87.1%) in the intervention group and by 77 of 140 participants (55.0%) in the control group (adjusted relative risk, 1.58; 95% confidence interval, 1.19-2.10).

Conclusion: Adding prenatal counseling to routine, early-postnatal counseling significantly increased the rates of glucose screening and contraceptive use by 6 weeks postpartum among pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus. Given that the incorporation of counseling on postpartum glucose testing and effective contraceptive use into standard prenatal care requires minimal increases in expenditure and manpower, implementation of this counseling strategy in clinical practice seems advisable.