Objective: To assess the association of fetal hormones with placental growth and fetal weight-to-placental weight ratio index (FPI) in pregnancies complicated by maternal diabetes.
Research design and methods: We conducted a prospective study using umbilical venous blood samples taken at birth from 122 offspring of mothers with type 1 diabetes (OT1D) and 46 control subjects.
Results: Placental weight (P = 0.009) and gestation-adjusted birth weight (P < 0.001) were increased in OT1D, but FPI was unaltered (P = 0.33). Placental weight correlated with birth weight (P < 0.001) and cord leptin (P < 0.001) in control subjects and OT1D, with further relationships with cord insulin, IGF-1, IGF-binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3), and triceps and subscapular thickness in OT1D. FPI was associated with adiponectin in both groups, even after adjustment for confounders.
Conclusions: Placental and fetal growth show a parallel increase in mothers with type 1 diabetes. The possible role of adiponectin in matching of fetal and placental growth merits further study.