Li L, Mu YC, Wang DW, Du J, Zhang ZJ, Wang FJ. Body composition and adipokines in pregnant women: Associations with gestational diabetes mellitus risk. World J Diabetes 2026; 17(1): 112690 [DOI: 10.4239/wjd.v17.i1.112690]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Lan Li, MD, Doctor, Clinical Laboratory, Anyang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Anyang Children’s Hospital, No. 96 Jiefang Avenue, Beiguan District, Anyang 455000, Henan Province, China. lanlinangan@126.com
Research Domain of This Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Article-Type of This Article
Retrospective Study
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This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Jan 15, 2026 (publication date) through Jan 14, 2026
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Journal Information of This Article
Publication Name
World Journal of Diabetes
ISSN
1948-9358
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Baishideng Publishing Group Inc, 7041 Koll Center Parkway, Suite 160, Pleasanton, CA 94566, USA
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Li L, Mu YC, Wang DW, Du J, Zhang ZJ, Wang FJ. Body composition and adipokines in pregnant women: Associations with gestational diabetes mellitus risk. World J Diabetes 2026; 17(1): 112690 [DOI: 10.4239/wjd.v17.i1.112690]
World J Diabetes. Jan 15, 2026; 17(1): 112690 Published online Jan 15, 2026. doi: 10.4239/wjd.v17.i1.112690
Body composition and adipokines in pregnant women: Associations with gestational diabetes mellitus risk
Lan Li, Yan-Chao Mu, Da-Wei Wang, Jie Du, Zhi-Jun Zhang, Feng-Jiao Wang
Lan Li, Yan-Chao Mu, Da-Wei Wang, Jie Du, Clinical Laboratory, Anyang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Anyang Children’s Hospital, Anyang 455000, Henan Province, China
Zhi-Jun Zhang, Department of Anesthesiology and Operating Theater, Anyang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Anyang Children’s Hospital, Anyang 455000, Henan Province, China
Feng-Jiao Wang, Women’s Health Management Center, Anyang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Anyang Children’s Hospital, Anyang 455000, Henan Province, China
Co-first authors: Lan Li and Yan-Chao Mu.
Author contributions: Li L proposed the research idea or question, prepared the first draft of the manuscript; Wang DW collected, managed and processed the data; Du J conducted the statistical analysis or calculation work, designed the research method; Mu YC obtained the funding for this research, and contributed to the revision and improvement of the manuscript; Wang FJ carried out the experiment or research; Zhang ZJ guided the research and supervised the team.
Institutional review board statement: This retrospective study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Anyang Maternal and Child Health Hospital (approval No. AF/04-07.0/10.0).
Informed consent statement: This study is a retrospective study and informed consent is not applicable.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Data sharing statement: The datasets used and analyzed during the current study available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Lan Li, MD, Doctor, Clinical Laboratory, Anyang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Anyang Children’s Hospital, No. 96 Jiefang Avenue, Beiguan District, Anyang 455000, Henan Province, China. lanlinangan@126.com
Received: August 4, 2025 Revised: September 8, 2025 Accepted: December 1, 2025 Published online: January 15, 2026 Processing time: 164 Days and 11.8 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is characterized by glucose intolerance first identified during pregnancy. Adipokines are adipose-derived hormones regulating insulin sensitivity, while body composition describes the body’s fat and non-fat components, which change dynamically in gestation.
AIM
To explore the associations between body composition, adipokines, and GDM risk, identifying early predictive markers to enhance prenatal risk assessment.
METHODS
A retrospective analysis included 1656 singleton pregnant women (276 with GDM, 1380 with normal glucose tolerance) from 2020-2024. Early pregnancy (6-16 weeks) body composition was assessed via bioelectrical impedance analysis. Adipokines (leptin, adiponectin, fatty acid-binding protein 4) and metabolic indices were measured during 24-28 weeks oral glucose tolerance test. Group comparisons, logistic regression, correlation analysis, and receiver operating characteristic curves were used to evaluate relationships and diagnostic performance.
RESULTS
GDM women had higher pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI), glucose/insulin, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, lower insulin sensitivity index (all P < 0.05). GDM showed higher fat mass percentage (FMP) (36.23% ± 7.54% vs 33.12% ± 9.87%), fat mass index (FMI) (9.87 ± 3.32 kg/m2vs 8.34 ± 4.11 kg/m2), extracellular-to-intracellular water ratio (ECW/ICW) (0.63 ± 0.03 vs 0.61 ± 0.02), lower lean mass indices (all P < 0.001 except ECW/ICW P = 0.012). GDM had higher leptin (P = 0.014), lower adiponectin (P = 0.021). FMP elevation was independent risk factor (odds ratio = 1.412, P = 0.030). Pre-pregnancy BMI (area under the curve = 0.662), FMP (0.651), FMI (0.650) had better diagnostic value than ECW/ICW (0.606).
CONCLUSION
Body composition parameters (FMP, FMI) and adipokines (leptin, adiponectin) are closely linked to GDM risk. Integrating these assessments into prenatal care facilitates early risk identification and targeted interventions to improve maternal-fetal outcomes.
Core Tip: This study investigates the interplay between body composition and adipokine levels in pregnant women, aiming to clarify their combined and individual associations with gestational diabetes mellitus risk. It highlights how adipose tissue-derived factors and body composition metrics may serve as potential markers or mechanistic links in gestational diabetes mellitus pathogenesis, offering insights for early risk assessment and intervention.
