https://diabetes.acponline.org/archives/2015/08/14/9.htm

Spotlight on cardiovascular disease

The American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association recently released a joint scientific statement on prevention of cardiovascular disease in adults with type 2 diabetes.


The American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association recently released a joint scientific statement on prevention of cardiovascular disease in adults with type 2 diabetes.

The statement focused on evidence and guidelines published since the organizations' last set of recommendations on the topic, released in 2007. The new statement reviewed the latest diagnostic criteria for diabetes and evidence on lifestyle management, including physical activity and nutrition, as well as preventive treatment. It was published by Circulation and Diabetes Care on Aug. 5.

The statement listed options for weight management (including medication and bariatric surgery) and synthesized the latest recommendations on management of blood glucose (a target HbA1c ≤7% for most patients) and blood pressure (a target of <140/90 mm Hg for most patients, medication regimens including either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin-receptor blocker). For cholesterol management, the statement recommends moderate-intensity statins for patients between 40 and 75 years with an LDL cholesterol level between 70 mg/dL (1.8 mmol/L) and 189 mg/dL (4.9 mmol/L) and high-intensity statins for those in the same age range who have an estimated risk of arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease ≥7.5%.

Current recommendations say that low-dose aspirin is reasonable for patients at intermediate or higher cardiovascular risk, as long as they don't have increased risk of bleeding, the statement said. It also summarized recommendations on screening for renal and cardiovascular disease complications and concluded with a list of areas of controversy and future research.