Pregnancy #2: The third trimester – Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT)
Ok I haven’t updated in a while because I have been busy trying to clear work before I go on my annual leave + child care leave + maternity leave combo starting tomorrow to March 2020! Can’t believe I still have a full month of AL + CCL to clear, but very thankful because I honestly need the time to prep for cdd’s arrival SOON!
Today’s post is a major throwback to the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) that I took at week 28 of my pregnancy. It was more than 6 weeks ago … I am 34W1D today!
Although this is my second pregnancy, it is only my first time doing the OGTT. Not that I have any symptoms to warrant the test – my weight gain has been relatively decent (+7.5kg at 28 weeks) and monthly routine urine tests came back clear – but it’s kind of the norm to test these days. I’ve heard that some private gynaes skip it though if you haven’t shown any signs of having gestational diabetes. Anyway, I still had to go for the test. Here’s how it went.
The night before
I had to fast for at least 10 hours and could only take sips of water.
The first reading
At 8.30pm, I reported to level 3 of Mount Alvernia Medical Centre.
The test basically goes like this:
1. At the clinic, take the first reading before anything. This is your fasting blood glucose level
2. Drink 500ml glucose drink
3. Take the second blood glucose reading after an hour
4. Take the third blood glucose reading after two hours
The nurse took a tube of blood and a urine sample. This was the first reading of the day, my fasting blood glucose level. According to the guidelines from Mount A, the fasting plasma glucose should be less than 5.1 mmol/L (92).
I then had to drink a 500ml bottle of glucose drink which basically tasted like non-carbonated F&N orange, and take my second glucose level reading an hour later. This is to gauge how my body processes the glucose after an hour.
The second reading
In between the one hour, we went up to my gynae’s clinic for our routine appointment to see cdd! Ok at least this hour isn’t wasted sitting around waiting for blood to be drawn. At 28W1D, cdd was 997g! 2 weeks later at 30 weeks, he was 1698g (700g in 2 weeks what is this) and at 32 weeks, he hit 2.2kg. Ultrasound scans are getting boring cos he is taking up all the space and you can’t see anything at all…
I went back to take my second reading. Time check: 9.36am
Again, a tube of blood was drawn + a urine sample. This reading should not exceed 10.0 mmol/L (180).
The third reading
Time check: 10.36am
By now, two hours have passed since I drank the glucose liquid. The nurse drew the last tube of blood and took my urine sample. At the end of two hours, the plasma glucose reading should be less than 8.5 mmol/L (153). And I was free to go.
From the time I drank the glucose liquid till the last reading, I was not supposed to drink any water but I did take small sips. I also walked up and down the stairs and along the corridor instead of sitting down waiting.
My results
I didn’t get the results on the spot. My gynae told me that his clinic will call me in 1-2 days to let me know if everything was normal or not. If yes, then he will see me 2 weeks later at our next appointment. If I have gestational diabetes or am pre-GD, then I will need to see the dietician. I passed!
And here are the guidelines/cut-off:
My weight gain
I put on 17kg in total when I had cbb… I think I can do lesser this time round! At 34 weeks, I have put on 10.5kg so far… but cdd has been growing quite fast, putting on between 500g and 700g for the past two visits. With a month to go, hopefully I can keep my weight gain below 13kg cos confinement sure put on weight. My doctor hasn’t said anything maybe because I’m having a c-section. As long as we are both healthy! Can’t wait to see you, cdd!
