Diabetes in pregnancy and its impact on Aboriginal babies in Western Australia

The thesis investigated the impact of diabetes in pregnancy (DIP) on the births and neonatal outcomes of Australian Aboriginal babies, using epidemiological methods applied to two decades of population-wide data. The results highlight that gestational diabetes in Aboriginal mothers was largely attributed to overweight/obesity. Further, DIP substantially contributed to increasing trends in large-for-gestational-age and heightened the risk of excessive fetal growth, shoulder dystocia and congenital anomalies to a greater extent in Aboriginal than non-Aboriginal populations. The findings underscore the urgent need for Aboriginal-led initiatives that improve care, education and glycaemic control in Aboriginal women.