People with prediabetes had a higher risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and dying from all causes during the next decade compared to people with normal glucose levels in a new large meta-analysis.
The increased risks remained even with different definitions of prediabetes in the subset of people with prediabetes and preexisting CVD.
These findings from a meta-analysis of 129 studies in more than 10 million people mainly from Europe, Asia, and North America were published online July 15 in BMJ by Xiaoyan Cai, MD, Southern Medical University, Foshan, China, and colleagues.
Roughly 36% of people in the United States and China have prediabetes, the authors write, and the prevalence is increasing worldwide.
By 2030 an estimated 470 million people will have prediabetes. And an expert panel of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) estimates up to 70% of people with prediabetes go on to develop type 2 diabetes.
Although many recent published studies have explored the links between prediabetes and CVD and mortality, the researchers write, “most of the studies had limited power to draw solid conclusions, however, and their results have been debated.”
Notably, Cai and colleagues observe, “a recent contentious report in Science defined prediabetes as a ‘dubious diagnosis’ because of the inconsistent association of prediabetes with cardiovascular disease and mortality”. Therefore, screening and appropriate management of prediabetes might contribute to primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Source: MedScape, BMJ
Read the article here.
