Trends and Outcomes among Pregnancy and Nonpregnancy-Related Hospitalizations with Diabetic Ketoacidosis

Am J Perinatol. 2025 Jan;42(2):164-170. doi: 10.1055/a-2334-8692. Epub 2024 May 28.

Abstract

Objective: The study's primary objective was to evaluate adverse outcomes among reproductive-age hospitalizations with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), comparing those that are pregnancy-related versus nonpregnancy-related and evaluating temporal trends.

Study design: We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study using the National Inpatient Sample to identify hospitalizations with DKA among reproductive-age women (15-49 years) in the United States (2016-2020). DKA in pregnancy hospitalizations was compared with DKA in nonpregnant hospitalizations. Adverse outcomes evaluated included mechanical ventilation, coma, seizures, renal failure, prolonged hospital stay, and in-hospital death. Multivariable Poisson regression models with robust error variance were used to estimate adjusted relative risk (aRR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Annual percent change (APC) was used to calculate the change in DKA rate over time.

Results: Among 35,210,711 hospitalizations of reproductive-age women, 447,600 (1.2%) were hospitalized with DKA, and among them, 13,390 (3%) hospitalizations were pregnancy-related. The rate of nonpregnancy-related DKA hospitalizations increased over time (APC = 3.8%, 95% CI = 1.5-6.1). After multivariable adjustment, compared with pregnancy-related hospitalizations with DKA, the rates of mechanical ventilation (aRR = 1.56, 95% CI = 1.18-2.06), seizures (aRR = 2.26, 95% CI = 1.72-2.97), renal failure (aRR = 2.26, 95% CI = 2.05-2.50), coma (aRR = 2.53, 95% CI = 1.68-3.83), and in-hospital death (aRR = 2.38, 95% CI = 1.06-5.36) were higher among nonpregnancy-related hospitalizations with DKA.

Conclusion: A nationally representative sample of hospitalizations indicates that over the 5-year period, the rate of nonpregnancy-related DKA hospitalizations increased among reproductive age women, and a higher risk of adverse outcomes was observed when compared with pregnancy-related DKA hospitalizations.

Key points: · Over 5 years, the rate of pregnancy-related DKA hospitalizations was stable.. · Over 5 years, the rate of nonpregnancy-related DKA hospitalizations increased.. · There is a higher risk of adverse outcomes with DKA outside of pregnancy..

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Diabetic Ketoacidosis* / epidemiology
  • Diabetic Ketoacidosis* / therapy
  • Female
  • Hospital Mortality
  • Hospitalization* / statistics & numerical data
  • Humans
  • Length of Stay / statistics & numerical data
  • Middle Aged
  • Pregnancy
  • Pregnancy Complications / epidemiology
  • Pregnancy Outcome / epidemiology
  • Respiration, Artificial / statistics & numerical data
  • Retrospective Studies
  • United States / epidemiology
  • Young Adult