The association between serum selenium level and gestational diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis

source extracted confidence: high 2026-04-09
#diabetes-gestational #female #humans #pregnancy #pregnancy-trimester-first

The association between serum selenium level and gestational diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Xu et al., 2022 | Diabetes Metab Res Rev | Meta Analysis

Citation

Xu Wenhui, Tang Yiwei, ... Xie Lin. The association between serum selenium level and gestational diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Diabetes Metab Res Rev. 2022-May;38(4):e3522. doi:10.1002/dmrr.3522

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The relationship between serum selenium level and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is controversial. The purpose is to update and summarize previous studies to understand the relationship in more detail. METHODS: PubMed, The Cochrane Library, EMBASE, Web of science, CNKI, WANFANG DATA and Cqvip were searched for studies published up to 3 September 2021. The random-effects model was used to measure the combined estimation. The overall effect was reported in a standard mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI). All data were analysed by Review Manager 5.4. RESULTS: Twenty-seven studies involving 1588 patients with GDM and 2450 healthy pregnant women contributed to this meta-analysis. Selenium level was significantly lower in women with GDM than those without GDM (SMD = -1.29; 95% CI: -1.60 to -0.97, p < 0.00001). Subgroup analyses showed that such trend was consistent within the non-European population (Asia: SMD = -1.44; 95% CI: -1.79 to -1.08, p < 0.00001; Africa: SMD = -2.62; 95% CI: -4.50 to -0.74, p = 0.006) and in the second and third trimesters (the second trimester: SMD = -1.41; 95% CI: -1.82 to -0.99, p < 0.00001; the third trimester: SMD = -1.54; 95% CI: -2.09 to -0.98, p < 0.00001), but not within the European population (SMD = -0.47; 95% CI: -1.09 to 0.16, p = 0.14) or in the first trimester (SMD = -0.52; 95% CI: -1.13 to 0.10, p = 0.10). CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis showed that the serum selenium level of patients with GDM was lower than that in healthy pregnant women, especially within the non-European population and in the second and third trimesters.

Key Findings

Twenty-seven studies involving 1588 patients with GDM and 2450 healthy pregnant women contributed to this meta-analysis. Selenium level was significantly lower in women with GDM than those without GDM (SMD = -1.29; 95% CI: -1.60 to -0.97, p < 0.00001). Subgroup analyses showed that such trend was consistent within the non-European population (Asia: SMD = -1.44; 95% CI: -1.79 to -1.08, p < 0.00001; Africa: SMD = -2.62; 95% CI: -4.50 to -0.74, p = 0.006) and in the second and third trimesters (the

Outcomes Measured

  • Requires manual extraction

Population

Field Value
Population healthy pregnant
Sample Size 1588
Age Range See abstract
Condition diabetes

MeSH Terms

  • Diabetes, Gestational
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Pregnancy
  • Pregnancy Trimester, First
  • Pregnancy Trimester, Second
  • Pregnancy Trimester, Third
  • Selenium

Evidence Classification

  • Level: Meta Analysis
  • Publication Types: Journal Article, Meta-Analysis, Systematic Review, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Vertical: selenium

Provenance

Source extracted via PubMed E-utilities API on 2026-04-09