Asymmetric dimethylarginine and arginine metabolites in women with and without a history of gestational diabetes

Abstract Aims Dysregulation of arginine metabolism, as evidenced by increased circulating levels of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), has been proposed as an early event in the natural history of cardiovascular disease. Since the diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) identifies a patient population at increased future risk of cardiovascular disease later in life, we sought to characterize arginine metabolism in women with and without a history of recent GDM. Methods In this prospective observational cohort study, 225 women (72 who had GDM; 153 who did not) underwent cardiometabolic characterization, including oral glucose tolerance test, at 1- and 3-years postpartum. Circulating ADMA and its stereoisomer symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) were measured by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry at both visits. Results Serum ADMA and SDMA were not significantly different between the GDM and non-GDM groups at either 1-year or 3-years postpartum. On multiple linear regression analyses, high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (t = − 2.62, p = 0.009) and creatinine (t = − 2.62, p = 0.01) were independently associated with ADMA at 3-years, while creatinine (t = 7.09, p  Conclusion Women with recent GDM do not exhibit altered serum concentrations of ADMA or SDMA at 1- and 3-years postpartum, suggesting that ADMA dysregulation is not a feature of their cardiometabolic profile in the early years after delivery.