The fate of the pregnant diabetic in the developing country: Kenya.

A six-year survey of pregnancies complicated by diabetes has been performed at the Kenyatta National Hospital, Nairobi. Fifty-five babies were delivered with 14 perinatal deaths-a perinatal mortality rate of 254/1000, which was five times that of the nondiabetic population. There was one maternal death. Diabetes tended to be of short duration compared with similar series reported from developed countries. There were no perinatal deaths within a small sub-group managed according to a simple plan based on early referral for antenatal care, monitoring of diabetic control by blood glucose, and timing of delivery by use of the "shake test".