As rates of Type 2 Diabetes, Gestational diabetes mellitus, and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy rise, so do the challenges of antepartum treatment and postpartum risk-reduction for future adverse cardiovascular events. The purpose of this Mentored Patient-Oriented Career Development Award (K23) is to enable the candidate to develop a funded research program that optimizes management of medical co-morbidities during pregnancy and identifies innovative ways to alter a woman's future chronic disease trajectory. To achieve this goal, training and mentorship are proposed in three key areas: 1) Advanced training in community-based participatory research, biostatistics, and clinical trials, 2) Protected time to perform patient-oriented research on the ability of a group diabetes-focused prenatal care program to improve postpartum health, and 3) Foundational research and introductions to relevant databases to facilitate future research on the relationship between pregnancy complications and future cardiovascular disease to facilitate research in the next phase. The research plan for this award will be implemented with the support of the training plan and an interdisciplinary team of expert mentors and advisors. The proposed project examines the ability of group prenatal diabetes care, Diabetes Centering Pregnancy (Diabetes CP), to improve outcomes for low-income pregnant African-American women with diabetes. These women are at increased long-term risk of developing cardiovascular disease, and this project takes advantage of the antenatal period to promote healthy behaviors that may carry over into the postpartum period and thus reduce this risk. Specifically, this project will determine whether Diabetes CP reduces maternal postpartum weight retention up to one year. The project will employ a randomized controlled design and a rigorous, systematic approach. The expected outcome of this study is high-quality pilot data assessing the efficacy of group prenatal care in women with type 2 and gestational diabetes. If the trial provides evidence that Diabetes CP is effective, data and experience from this study will support the development of an R01 application to test Diabetes CP in a multi-center randomized trial. If the hypothesis that group prenatal care reduces maternal postpartum weight retention is confirmed, the findings will revolutionize diabetes care in the United States. Group prenatal care will be a simple, cost-effective intervention for the increasing numbers of women with diabetes in pregnancy. The training and research activities outlined in this proposal will complement the candidate's background in public health and place her in a unique position to advance our ability to treat women with chronic diseases of pregnancy and improve their long-term health. Ultimately, this work will lead to new, innovative ways of providing prenatal care to women with co-morbid diseases that may impair their health, both during pregnancy and for years to come.
The central goal of the proposed project is to test the ability of a group prenatal care strategy to reduce postpartum maternal weight retention in women with type 2 and gestational diabetes. Achievement of the specific aims of this study will thus have an important impact on the care and long-term cardiovascular health of thousands of women in the U.S. annually.
