Study Type
Interventional
ongoing
South Asian pregnant women have a 1 in 3 chance of developing gestational diabetes. The DESI-GDM trial will assess the impact of a culturally tailored, personalized nutrition intervention delivered by a trained health coach on the blood sugar levels of South Asian women and the impact on the incidence of gestational diabetes mellitus.
The findings of this study will be important in guiding future evidence-based recommendations and public health policies to manage gestational glycemia in pregnant women at risk of GDM.
DESI-GDM study overview - download PDFStudy Design
Randomized controlled trial
NO. of Countries
1
NO. of Sites
1
NO. of Participants
190
Study Period
2020 - 2024
Sponsor
PHRI
Russell De Souza
Associate Scientist
Russell De Souza
Associate Scientist
Russell De Souza, a registered dietitian and nutritional epidemiologist, focuses his research on dietary factors that influence chronic disease throughout the lifespan, with a particular interest in macronutrients, dietary patterns and cardiovascular disease.
He received his doctoral degree in nutritional epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health. He completed post-doctoral training in systematic reviews and randomized trial methodology jointly at McMaster University, and at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto.
Dipika Desai
Program Manager
Dipika Desai
Program Manager
Dipika Desai oversees many epidemiologic studies, including the South Asian birth cohort, START, the South Asian Heart Risk Assessment (SAHARA), and the Canadian Alliance for Healthy Hearts and Minds (CAHHM), as well as management assistance and oversight in the utilization of samples from a number of other studies.
She has a Bachelor’s degree in Food and Nutrition from the M S University in Baroda, India, and a Master’s degree in Human Nutrition from the University of British Columbia.
Video: DESI GDM trial patient recruitment promotion
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
completed
DESI-GDM Digital
Global & Population Health
The DESI-GDM Digital study will develop and pilot test an integrated digital health platform (DHP)...
