Background and Objective: Maternal diabetes is associated with an increased risk of adverse neonatal outcomes. However, the effect of maternal diabetes on neonatal outcomes in terms of nucleated red blood cells (NRBC) has not been investigated. Due to the increasing incidence of diabetes during pregnancy, the present study aimed to compare the number of NRBC in newborns born to diabetic and normal pregnancies and to investigate the effect of diabetes on neonatal outcomes.
Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 204 newborns admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of Ghaem Hospital in Mashhad, Iran, who were born to normal and diabetic pregnancies during the years 2021-2025. The data were collected through a researcher-made questionnaire containing neonatal characteristics, maternal characteristics, and neonatal laboratory characteristics.
Results: Values of the first- and fifth-minute Apgar scores, gestational age, and weight of the newborns in the group of newborns of diabetic mothers were lower than those in the group of newborns of healthy mothers. The mean number of NRBC/100 white blood cells (WBC) of the newborn with an effect size of -0.290, a confidence interval of -0.611-0.033, and p value of 0.043, as well as the rates of preterm delivery, cesarean section, and sepsis were higher in the group of newborns born to diabetic pregnancy.
Conclusion: In the group of newborns born to mothers with diabetes, compared to the group of newborns resulting from normal pregnancy, the mean number of NRBC/100WBC was approximately 5.5 times higher, while the values of the first- and fifth-minute Apgar scores, the weight of the newborn, and gestational age were lower, and adverse neonatal outcomes were highe
