Why are lipid measures important in diabetes clinical care and research?
• Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in type 2 diabetes (T2D). • LDL, HDL and TG are all independent and significant predictors of cardiovascular risk. • Although no clinical trials examining the benefits of lipid-lowering therapy have been done specifically in diabetes, several studies have investigated the benefits of HMG-CoA reductase inibitor (statin) therapy in primary prevention, in high-risk populations (which included some patients with diabetes) and in those with known ischemic heart disease. • Most recommendations suggest that those with diabetes should be treated with a statin if the LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C) is > 130mg/dl, with the treatment goal being an LDL-C of < 100mg/dl. What do the test results mean? There is clear evidence that treating LDL-C’s of >130mg/dl reduces cardiovascular mortality in high-risk patients, such as those with T2D. Some evidence suggests that treating the LDL-C to <100mg/dl has additional benefits in reducing car
