Common clinical manifestations of maternal diabetes in newborn infants: implications for the practicing pediatrician.

Even though perinatal mortality of infants of diabetic mothers has decreased remarkably in recent years and now approaches that of the general population, these infants still face a multitude of potential complications and the propensity for increased morbidity, both in utero and postnatally. Many of these complications are clearly related to the metabolic status of the diabetic mother. Increasing awareness among insulin-dependent diabetic patients and health providers of the need for glycemic control and the ever-growing understanding of the peculiarities of diabetic pregnancies eventually should combine to provide the best possible outcome for these infants.