Diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of cardiovascular diseases in people with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes: a consensus statement jointly from the Japanese Circulation Society and the Japan Diabetes Society

Cardiovascular disease prevalence in adults with type 2 diabetes in Japan: results from the Japanese centers in the CAPTURE study

Introduction

CAPTURE was a cross-sectional, non-interventional study (NCT03786406, NCT03811288) investigating the prevalence and characteristics of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D) across 13 countries worldwide. Here we present the findings for Japan.

Materials and methods

Data were collected from adults aged ≥ 20 years (aged ≥ 18 years in countries outside Japan) with T2D who were managed in clinics or hospitals in 2019. Standardized methodology was used for all countries. The prevalence of CVD and its subtypes was estimated, weighted by care setting (clinics versus hospitals).

Results

Among participants from Japan (total: 800; clinics: 440; hospitals: 360), mean (standard deviation) age was 65.6 (11.2) years and glycated hemoglobin 7.2% (0.9). Sixty-seven percent of participants were male, 57.8% had diabetes duration > 10 years, 49.8% had body mass index ≥ 25 kg/m2 and 63.1% had hypertension. The weighted prevalences (95% confidence interval [CI]) of CVD and atherosclerotic CVD were 37.3% (34.2;40.3) and 33.5% (30.6;36.4), respectively. The prevalence (95% CI) of the most common subtypes of CVD was: carotid artery disease 20.5% (18.2;22.8), coronary heart disease 11.9% (9.7;14.1) and cerebrovascular disease 10.4% (8.3;12.5).

Conclusions

These contemporary data from the CAPTURE study on CVD prevalence in adults with T2D in Japan show that approximately one in three adults with T2D had established CVD, which is comparable to the prevalence in the global study cohort.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13340-022-00612-y.

Quality of life and other patient-reported outcomes in adult Lebanese patients with type 2 diabetes during COVID-19 pandemic

INTRODUCTION

Several studies have shown that COVID-19 pandemic has a negative impact on type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM) patients' quality of life (QoL). However, very few studies were performed in Middle Eastern countries.

AIM

The aim of the current study was to assess, the QoL and diabetes-specific QoL, treatment satisfaction and psychological distress of Lebanese patients with T2DMs using: the Audit of Diabetes-Dependent Quality of Life (ADDQoL), Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire status version (DTSQs) and Kessler 10 (K10) questionnaires and to compare results to those obtained during the pre-COVID-19 period.

RESULTS

461 patients with T2DM participated in the study; 52.6% men, 47.4% women; median age 59 years old. The respective median ADDQoL and DTSQs scores were - 2.2 (interval interquartile range (IQR) - 3.9, - 0.8) (range from - 9 maximum negative impact to + 3 maximum positive impact) and 30(IQR22-36) (range from 0 maximum dissatisfaction to 36 maximum satisfaction). K10 median score was 26(IQR18-35) (range from minimum score of 10 indicating no distress to maximum score of 50 indicating severe distress). Rural dwelling, lack of exercise, current smoking, diabetic complications, injectable diabetes treatment, and previous COVID-19 infection were all associated with significantly worse ADDQoL, DTSQs, and K10 score indicating greater distress. A significant worsening of ADDQoL scores followed onset of the pandemic with no significant change in DTSQs scores.

CONCLUSION

During the COVID-19 pandemic, T2DM Lebanese patients experienced more negative impact of diabetes on QoL and mental health. Those infected with COVID-19 also reported worse QoL, treatment satisfaction and mental health. This highlights the need for community and individual support.

Recent Updates to Clinical Practice Guidelines for Diabetes Mellitus

Guidelines for the management of patients with diabetes have become an important part of clinical practice that improve the quality of care and help establish evidence-based medicine in this field. With rapidly accumulating evidence on various aspects of diabetes care, including landmark clinical trials of treatment agents and newer technologies, timely updates of the guidelines capture the most current state of the field and present a consensus. As a leading academic society, the Korean Diabetes Association publishes practice guidelines biennially and the American Diabetes Association does so annually. In this review, we summarize the key changes suggested in the most recent guidelines. Some of the important updates include treatment algorithms emphasizing comorbid conditions such as atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, heart failure, and chronic kidney disease in the selection of anti-diabetic agents; wider application of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), insulin pump technologies and indices derived from CGM such as time in range; more active screening of subjects at high-risk of diabetes; and more detailed individualization in diabetes care. Although there are both similarities and differences among guidelines and some uncertainty remains, these updates provide a good approach for many clinical practitioners who are battling with diabetes.

Comparison of the clinical effect of empagliflozin on glycemic and non-glycemic parameters in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease treated with or without baseline metformin

Background

The most recent treatment guidelines for type 2 diabetes (T2D) recommend sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors should be considered preferentially in patients with T2D with either a high cardiovascular risk or with cardiovascular disease (CVD), regardless of their diabetes status and prior use of conventional metformin therapy. Whether the therapeutic impact of SGLT2 inhibitors on clinical parameters differs according to the use of metformin therapy however remains unclear.

Methods

The study was a post hoc analysis of the EMBLEM trial (UMIN000024502). All participants (n = 105; women 31.4%; mean age 64.8 years) had both T2D and CVD and were randomized to either 24 weeks of empagliflozin 10 mg daily or placebo. Analysis of the data assessed the effect of empagliflozin on changes from baseline to 24 weeks in glycemic and non-glycemic clinical parameters, according to the baseline use of metformin.

Results

Overall, 53 (50.5%) patients received baseline metformin. In the 52 patients treated with empagliflozin (48.1% with baseline metformin), the decrease in systolic blood pressure from baseline levels was greater in patients receiving metformin, compared to that observed in metformin-naïve patients (group difference − 8.5 [95% confidence interval (CI) − 17.7 to 0.6 mmHg], p = 0.066). Reduction in body mass index (BMI) was significantly greater in patients receiving baseline metformin, relative to nonusers (− 0.54 [95% CI − 1.07 to − 0.01] kg/m², p = 0.047). The group ratio (baseline metformin users vs. nonusers) of proportional changes in the geometric mean of high-sensitivity Troponin-I (hs-TnI) was 0.74 (95% CI 0.59 to 0.92, p = 0.009). No obvious differences were observed in glycemic parameters (fasting plasma glucose, glycohemoglobin, and glycoalbumin) between the baseline metformin users and nonusers.

Conclusion

Our findings suggest 24 weeks of empagliflozin treatment was associated with an improvement in glycemic control, irrespective of the baseline use of metformin therapy. The effects of empagliflozin on reductions in BMI and hs-TnI were more apparent in patients who received baseline metformin therapy, compared to that observed in metformin-naïve patients.

Trial registration University Medical Information Network Clinical Trial Registry, number 000024502