Identification of the four conventional cardiovascular disease risk factors by Dutch general practitioners

BACKGROUND: Detecting and managing the four major conventional risk factors, smoking, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and hypercholesterolemia, is pivotal in the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). OBJECTIVE: To assess the preventive activities of general practitioners (GPs) regarding the four conventional risk factors and the associated measurements for cardiovascular risk factors by GPs in relation to the time of the first clinical presence of CVD. SETTING: Large longitudinal general practice research database (the Integrated Primary Care Information database) in the Netherlands from September 1999 to August 2003. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: Patients > 18 year of age with newly diagnosed CVD with a valid history of at least 1 year before and after the first clinical diagnosis of CVD. Details on conventional risk factors and associated measurements for the four cardiovascular risk factors were assessed in relation to the first clinical diagnosis of CVD. RESULTS: In total, 157,716 patients met the study inclusion criteria. Of the 2,594 patients with newly diagnosed CVD, at least one of the four investigated risk factors was observed in 76% of women and 73% of men. In 40% of cases, no risk factor was recorded before the date of the first CVD diagnosis. In 16% of cases, no associated measurements were present before the first CVD diagnosis. CONCLUSION: In daily practice, GPs seem to focus on the secondary prevention of CVD. Intervention strategies that aim to influence GPs' case finding behavior should focus on increasing the awareness of physicians in performing risk factor-associated measurements in patients who are eligible for the primary prevention of CVD. Further research will have to show the feasibility and effectiveness of such intervention strategies.     

Perceptions of heart attack risk amongst individuals with diabetes

AimIndividuals with diabetes are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). There is good evidence that this risk can be reduced by pharmacotherapies and lifestyle modification. Despite this, knowledge of CVD risk amongst individuals with diabetes remains poor. We undertook a qualitative study to investigate lay perceptions of heart attack risk amongst individuals with diabetes in order to gather information about underlying perceptions concerning risk and risk reduction strategies.MethodsWe conducted three focus groups in Oxford using an open-ended question map. Content analysis was performed to identify recurring themes, similar patterns, distinctions and supportive quotations.ResultsConcern about having a heart attack varied widely. A commonly held view was that a 10-year heart attack risk of 10% or greater was high and being aware of one's risk was important so that lifestyle changes or other interventions could be implemented. Participants consistently viewed physical activity as potentially harmful. Almost all participants sought healthcare and lifestyle advice from their primary healthcare providers in the first instance, preferring this to information in the lay press or government campaigns.ConclusionThe focus groups have allowed us to better understand lay perceptions of, and underlying assumptions about, CVD risk. These findings may be of use when discussing CVD risk and risk reduction strategies in primary care.     

Erectile dysfunction and its association with metabolic syndrome and endothelial function among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

ContextEvidence suggests that numerous comorbid conditions contribute to erectile dysfunction (ED) among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).ObjectiveTo review the relationship and mechanism between diabetes, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and ED.MethodsA manual review of authoritative literature from peer-reviewed publications from January 2001 through July 2010 was performed. These publications were further mined to consider the impact of metabolic syndrome as a comorbid condition. Publications from key references were also consulted.ResultsThe associations between obesity, dyslipidemia, metabolic syndrome, T2DM, CVD, and depression with sexual dysfunction suggest that sexual dysfunction, particularly ED, is a precursor to CVD. Because these conditions share important risk factors with CVD, identifying them and their relationships with the pathogenesis of ED is likely to be critical to the manner in which primary care physicians screen for and manage this condition.ConclusionsPrimary care physicians ought to establish trusting relationships with their patients, providing opportunities for them to probe such sensitive issues as sexual activities, as a means of addressing the possibility of ED. When making the new diagnosis of sexual dysfunction in the absence of metabolic disease or CVD, physicians ought to consider the risk for T2DM and CVD. Associations between metabolic disease, heart disease, and sexual dysfunction further suggest that all patients who are obese and have dyslipidemia, T2DM, and/or depression should be further screened for ED.     

Physician attitudes and practices and patient awareness of the cardiovascular complications of diabetes

OBJECTIVES: Studies were conducted to: 1) assess physicians' attitudes and practices in managing cardiovascular disease (CVD) risks in diabetes; and 2) determine the awareness of CVD risks among diabetic patients. BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of premature death among diabetic patients. As diabetes is often seen as a "glucose-centric" disease, it is unclear whether diabetic patients are talking with their doctors about CVD and other key clinical parameters of diabetes care such as blood pressure and cholesterol. METHODS: An online survey was completed by a nationally representative sample of 900 physicians. The 95% confidence interval is approximately +/-2.5%. Before this study, a telephone survey of 2,008 people with diabetes was conducted using random, direct-dial screenings of U.S. households. RESULTS: Ninety-one percent of physicians believe that their patients with diabetes are "very" or "extremely" likely to have a cardiovascular event. Although physicians report discussing CVD risk factors with 88% of their diabetic patients, they perceive their diabetic patients as being only moderately knowledgeable about their increased CVD risks. Sixty-eight percent of the people with diabetes do not consider CVD to be a serious complication of diabetes; they are more likely to be aware of complications such as blindness (65%) or amputation (36%) rather than heart disease (17%), heart attack (14%), or stroke (5%). Physicians perceive "poor compliance" with behavioral modifications and medication regimens as the greatest barriers to the management of CVD risks in diabetic patients. CONCLUSION: Materials should be made available to help facilitate communication about CVD risks, and strategies for improving compliance with life-style modifications and multiple drug therapies should be explored. Efforts should continue to promote a comprehensive approach to the management of diabetes to include aggressive control of blood glucose and other CVD risk factors.     

Identifying obese women most at risk from cardiovascular disease

In Western countries, more women than men die every year of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and women spend more life years with cardiovascular disease than men. Fortunately, premature cardiovascular disease in women is preventable. Evidence-based guidelines for the prevention of cardiovascular disease in women recommend an initial risk assessment. However, recommended risk-assessment tools such as the Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation (SCORE) system may not be sufficient to detect risk in women with obesity. A further barrier to prevention in women is the fact that physicians may underestimate the effects of risk factors that are particularly dangerous or prevalent in women. These include type 2 diabetes, hypertension, smoking, abdominal obesity, poor exercise capacity and the metabolic syndrome. Several of these factors, as well as some novel biomarkers, may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease relatively more in women than in men. To assess risk in obese women, a multifactorial assessment that encompasses assessment of body-fat distribution should be undertaken. Weight loss and lifestyle changes that have been shown to improve risk-factor profiles are crucial interventions and should be considered, even if standard risk calculators do not indicate an elevated cardiovascular risk.     

Evidence-based treatment of hyperglycaemia with incretin therapies in patients with type 2 diabetes and advanced chronic kidney disease

Type 2 diabetes is the leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD). The prevalence of CKD is growing in parallel with the rising number of patients with type 2 diabetes globally. At present, the optimal approach to glycaemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes and advanced CKD (categories 4 and 5) remains uncertain, as these patients were largely excluded from clinical trials of glucose-lowering therapies. Nonetheless, clinical trial data are available for the use of incretin therapies, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, for patients with type 2 diabetes and advanced CKD. This review discusses the role of incretin therapies in the management of these patients. Because the presence of advanced CKD in patients with type 2 diabetes is associated with a markedly elevated risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), treatment strategies must include the reduction of both CKD and CVD risks because death, particularly from cardiovascular causes, is more probable than progression to end-stage kidney disease. The management of hyperglycaemia is essential for good diabetes care even in advanced CKD. Current evidence supports an individualized approach to glycaemic management in patients with type 2 diabetes and advanced CKD, taking account of the needs of each patient, including the presence of co-morbidities and concomitant therapies. Although additional studies are needed to establish optimal strategies for glycaemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes and advanced CKD, treatment regimens with currently available pharmacotherapy can be individually tailored to meet the needs of this growing patient population.     

Cardiovascular risk and the implications for clinical practice of cardiovascular outcome trials in type 2 diabetes

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the primary cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). This review examines the impact of cardiovascular outcome trials (CVOTs) on clinical practice. To date, all CVOTs have shown non-inferiority versus placebo (both added to standard of care) against a primary endpoint of 3- or 4-point major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE), confirming CV safety of these treatments. Additionally, some CVOTs have shown superiority to placebo against the same MACE endpoint, suggesting a cardioprotective action for these treatments. This is reflected in guideline updates, which primary care physicians should consider when personalizing treatments.     

Cardiovascular disease in diabetes mellitus: classical and non-classical risk factors

Cardiovascular disease, which includes coronary heart disease (CHD), cerebrovascular disease (CVD), and peripheral vascular disease (PVD), is the leading cause of mortality in populations, particularly in the diabetic one. Individuals with diabetes have at least a two-fold to four-fold increased risk of having cardiovascular events and a double risk of death compared with age-matched subjects without diabetes. A decline in mortality from CVD has been shown, but decline due to CHD is consistently lower in individuals with diabetes when compared with non-diabetics. The presence of several factors in diabetes leads to high occurrence of CVD such as hyperglycemia, insulin resistance, and classical and non-classical risk factors (systemic hypertension, dyslipidemia, obesity, proinflammatory condition and others). It is possible that the atherogenic role of obesity may be at least in part due to increased adipocyte production of cytokines. Considering the marked association of diabetes and CVD and unfavorable prognosis following an event, it is important to identify who is at high risk and how to screen. The American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association recommend risk stratification using diagnostic tests. However, the challenge is to accurately identify patients without a prior history of an event and those without symptoms strongly suggesting CVD, in whom additional testing would be indicated in order to achieve the most effective prevention. The benefits of glycemic control and the other risk factors have already been shown and justify optimization of the management of this high-risk population, aiming to reduce cardiovascular mortality disease and improve quality of life.     

Approach to Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease

OPINION STATEMENT: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is associated with a large burden of cardiovascular risk factors ultimately leading to increased cardiovascular events and mortality. Prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in CKD involves early identification of individuals at high-risk of renal disease. In fact, substantial evidence points to a complex bidirectional relationship between CKD and CVD. Therefore, most interventions directed at CKD prevention should include multiple risk factor interventions with the goal of preventing CVD events while slowing progression of CKD. Clearly, prevention of CVD in CKD is a complex task and requires a multidisciplinary team approach, with a well-defined program, rational targets for each risk factor, and implementation of the most effective intervention strategies. Although several interventions to prevent CVD have proven effective in the general population and in individuals at high risk for CVD, a true benefit in patients with CKD remains to be demonstrated for several of them. A few rational targets of intervention should be optimal blood pressure control, reduction of proteinuria, treatment of dyslipidemia, good control of diabetes, smoking cessation, dietary salt restriction, achievement of normal body mass index, partial correction of anemia, and management of mineral metabolism abnormalities. Lifestyle modification and pharmacological therapy with renin-angiotensin blockers, β-blockers, diuretics, statins, and aspirin should be encouraged in the early stages of CKD.     

Primary and secondary prevention strategy for cardiovascular disease in diabetes mellitus

The majority of individuals with diabetes die from cardiovascular disease (CVD) and related complications. The risk of CVD is 2 to 4 fold greater in diabetes and largely magnified by co-morbidities that aggregate along with it. Sufficient evidence-based data now exist to support multifactorial risk intervention with specific targets for goal-directed therapy for both primary and secondary prevention. These interventions have shown survival benefit in addition to prevention of vascular complications. Prevention of diabetes and delaying its onset should also be an important aspect in future health care strategy and research to confront the oncoming tsunami of CVD related to diabetes.     

Cardiovascular disease in diabetes and the cardiometabolic syndrome: Focus on minority women

Diabetes and the cardiometabolic syndrome (CMS) are evolving as global epidemics. In the United States, diabetes affects 20 million people, with 47 million afflicted with the CMS. These disorders have a higher propensity for women, particularly in minority populations with disproportionate increase in cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Despite the decline in CVD mortality rates in the general population over the past 35 years parallel to the advances in therapeutic interventions, these rates have increased in women with diabetes. Early preventive measures for CVD risk factor through behavioral and lifestyle modification, smoking cessation, and reduction in psychosocial stressors, as well as pharmacotherapy, are among the currently supported approaches to CVD risk reduction in this high-risk population. In this article, we discuss CVD in people with diabetes and the CMS, with emphasis on minority women, a particularly vulnerable population.     

Addressing Cardiovascular Risk in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: Focus on Primary Care

Type 2 diabetes is a disorder of glucose and lipid metabolism associated with increased risk of macrovascular and microvascular complications. The primary focus of treating type 2 diabetes is glycemic control; simultaneous management of cardiometabolic risk factors, including blood pressure, lipid profile and overweight/obesity, has been shown to improve outcomes. All patients with diabetes require individualized combination therapy including diet and exercise intervention to help prevent microvascular and macrovascular complications. Because primary care physicians in the United States provide the majority of care for patients with type 2 diabetes, this article discusses the management of cardiovascular risk with a specific focus on primary care. In addition, mechanisms by which existing and novel antidiabetes therapies may modulate the metabolic pathways and a review of the benefits of cardiovascular risk reduction using multifactorial, primary care-focused intervention strategies will be discussed. Finally, early- and late-stage disease management strategies are discussed.     

Gambling With Cardiovascular Disease Risk Models: How to Choose and How to Use

Cardiovascular risk assessment has been shown to improve physicians’ and patients’ understanding of an individual’s future risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). It has also been shown to improve the management of cardiovascular risk factors including hypertension and dyslipidemia. Given the challenges of engaging patients to adhere to healthy lifestyle habits or take medications for hypertension and dyslipidemia, the primary role of CVD risk assessment should be to open a discussion about the patient’s risk for CVD and associated conditions like adult-onset diabetes. Calculating a patient’s long-term risk and estimating the benefits of lifestyle changes or risk factor management may then be used to support long-term patient adherence. However, risk assessment is only a first step and must be followed by evidence-based health-promotion strategies and risk factor medications that have been proven to work.     

Cardiac risk factors in patients with diabetes mellitus and major depression

OBJECTIVE: The prevalence of major depression is approximately 2-fold higher in patients with diabetes mellitus compared to medical controls. We explored the association of major depression with 8 cardiac risk factors in diabetic patients with and without evidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD). DESIGN: A mail survey questionnaire was administered to a population-based sample of 4,225 patients with diabetes to obtain data on depression status, diabetes self-care (diet, exercise, and smoking), diabetes history, and demographics. On the basis of automated data we measured diabetes complications, glycosylated hemoglobin, medical comorbidity, low-density lipid levels, triglyceride levels, diagnosis of hypertension, and evidence of microalbuminuria. Separate analyses were conducted for subgroups according to the presence or absence of CVD. SETTING: Nine primary care clinics of a nonprofit health maintenance organization. MAIN RESULTS: Patients with major depression and diabetes were 1.5- to 2-fold more likely to have 3 or more cardiovascular risk factors as patients with diabetes without depression (62.5% vs 38.4% in those without CVD, and 61.3% vs 45% in those with CVD). Patients with diabetes without CVD who met criteria for major depression were significantly more likely to be smokers, to have a body mass index (BMI) > or = 30 kg/m2, to lead a more sedentary lifestyle, and to have HbA1c levels of >8.0% compared to nondepressed patients with diabetes without heart disease. Patients with major depression, diabetes, and evidence of heart disease were significantly more likely to have a BMI > or = 30 kg/m2, a more sedentary lifestyle, and triglyceride levels > 400 mg/dl than nondepressed diabetic patients with evidence of heart disease. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with major depression and diabetes with or without evidence of heart disease have a higher number of CVD risk factors. Interventions aimed at decreasing these risk factors may need to address treatment for major depression in order to be effective.     

Cardiovascular risk assessment scores for people with diabetes: a systematic review

People with type 2 diabetes have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Multivariate cardiovascular risk scores have been used in many countries to identify individuals who are at high risk of CVD. These risk scores include those originally developed in individuals with diabetes and those developed in a general population. This article reviews the published evidence for the performance of CVD risk scores in diabetic patients by: (1) examining the overall rationale for using risk scores; (2) systematically reviewing the literature on available scores; and (3) exploring methodological issues surrounding the development, validation and comparison of risk scores. The predictive performance of cardiovascular risk scores varies substantially between different populations. There is little evidence to suggest that risk scores developed in individuals with diabetes estimate cardiovascular risk more accurately than those developed in the general population. The inconsistency in the methods used in evaluation studies makes it difficult to compare and summarise the predictive ability of risk scores. Overall, CVD risk scores rank individuals reasonably accurately and are therefore useful in the management of diabetes with regard to targeting therapy to patients at highest risk. However, due to the uncertainty in estimation of true risk, care is needed when using scores to communicate absolute CVD risk to individuals.     

An Australian cardiovascular risk equation for type 2 diabetes: the Fremantle Diabetes Study

Background: There is no valid cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk prediction equation for Australians with diabetes. The aim of this study is to develop and validate a multivariate risk function for 5‐year cardiovascular risk prediction in Australian type 2 diabetes patients. Methods: The Fremantle Diabetes Study is a community‐based longitudinal observational study. A total of 1240 type 2 diabetic patients (95.8% of the baseline cohort) with all required risk factor data were followed from baseline (1993–1996) for 5 years or until they experienced a cardiovascular event or died, whichever came first. CVD during follow up was defined as hospitalization for/with myocardial infarction or stroke, and death from cardiac or cerebrovascular causes or sudden death. Validation of the algorithm was performed on an independent diabetic cohort from the Busselton Health Study. Results: During 5570 patient‐years of follow up, 185 (14.9%) had at least one CVD event and 175 (14.1%) died (57.7% from CVD). Variables in the final model comprised age, sex, prior CVD, ln(urinary albumin : creatinine ratio), lnHbA_1c, ln(high density lipoprotein‐cholesterol), Southern European ethnic background and Aboriginality. The mean 5‐year predicted risk of a CVD event was 15.5%. Applied to the Busselton cohort, discrimination of the model was good (AUC = 0.84, P < 0.001) as was the goodness‐of‐fit (Hosmer–Lemeshow Ĉ‐test, P= 0.85) and accuracy (mean squared error (95% confidence interval) = 0.09 (0–0.76)). The positive and negative predictive values for a 10% 5‐year CVD risk cut‐off were 23.4% and 97.7% respectively. Conclusion: This simple diabetes‐specific 5‐year CVD risk equation is the first validated, population‐based Australian model. It should have a role in diabetes management in primary and specialist care.     

Macrovascular angiopathy in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes

Diabetes represents one of the most common diseases globally. Worryingly, the worldwide incidence of type 1 diabetes (T1D) is rising by 3% per year. Despite the rapid increase in diabetes incidence, recent advances in diabetes treatment have been successful in decreasing morbidity and mortality from diabetes-related retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy. In contrast, there is clear evidence for the lack of improvement in mortality for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). This emphasizes the importance of focusing childhood diabetes care strategies for the prevention of CVD in adulthood. Furthermore, although most work on diabetes and macrovascular disease relates to type 2 diabetes, it has been shown that the age-adjusted relative risk of CVD in T1D far exceeds that in type 2 diabetes. As T1D appears predominantly during childhood, those with T1D are at greater risk for coronary events early in life and require lifelong medical attention. Because of the important health effects of CVDs in children and adolescents with T1D, patients, family members, and care providers should understand the interaction of T1D and cardiovascular risk. In addition, optimal cardiac care for the patient with diabetes should focus on aggressive management of traditional cardiovascular risk factors to optimize those well-recognized as well as new specific risk factors which are becoming available. Therefore, a complete characterization of the molecular mechanisms involved in the development and progression of macrovascular angiopathy is needed. Furthermore, as vascular abnormalities begin as early as in childhood, potentially modifiable risk factors should be identified at an early stage of vascular disease development.     

Residual cardiovascular risk in secondary prevention

Despite substantial progress in the characterization and pharmacological treatment of risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD), residual cardiovascular risk represents a challenge to an effective CVD primary and secondary prevention. A multifactorial approach aimed at controlling all risk factors present in each individual patient is of paramount importance to effectively reduce the risk of CV events. While aggressive as compared to conventional LDL-cholesterol lowering provides further CV events reduction in secondary prevention patients, significant residual cardiovascular risk remains even after intensive statin therapy and an LDL-C levels of <70?mg/dL. Combination lipid-lowering strategies with a statin and fenofibrate or a statin and nicotinic acid may provide significant residual CV risk reduction in selected subgroups of patients (i.e. patients with diabetes on statin therapy and persistently low HDL-C and/or high triglycerides). Intensive risk factor management approaches aimed at controlling plasma LDL-C, glucose metabolism and blood pressure may significantly reduce residual CV risk; they should however be implemented based on individual cardiovascular risk profiles and clinical phenotypes, following the footsteps of personalized medicine.     

Considerations for treating dyslipidemia in special diabetic populations

This is a review of the problem of dyslipidemia and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in special diabetic populations. Clearly all patients with diabetes are at increased risk for CVD compared to non-diabetic populations. But within the subset that is patients with diabetes there are individuals who are particularly vulnerable. These groups include women, who are often overlooked and undertreated for their cardiovascular risk. Additionally, it includes those with fewer resources, many from minority populations, who are at very high risk for poor preventive care and serious cardiovascular morbidity. This review details the risk for CVD in a variety of different diabetic high-risk groups. It then discusses treatment options and approaches that should be employed in these populations.