Abstract 14715: Diabetes and Relative Rates of Cardiovascular Events in Women Compared With Men

Abstract

Data are inconsistent regarding sex-differences in the relative rates of cardiovascular events associated with diabetes. We aimed to investigate whether diabetes confers higher relative rates of cardiovascular events in women compared with men using contemporary data, and whether these sex-differences depend on age. Methods: All patients seen in French hospitals in 2013 with at least 5 years or follow-up (or dying earlier) without a history major adverse cardiovascular event, were identified and characterized by individual-level linkage of French nationwide administrative registers. They were categorized by diabetes-status and followed-up until 31 December 2019. Using Cox models, we calculated overall and age-dependent incidence rates, incidence rate ratios, and women-to-men ratios for myocardial infarction, heart failure, ischemic stroke, or cardiovascular death (MACE-HF). Results: The study included 3,381,472 individuals among whom 482,848 (14.3%) had diabetes (88.1% with type 2 diabetes). Among 482,848 (45% women) patients with diabetes, the absolute rate of MACE-HF was higher in men than in women (9.7 vs. 7.4 per 100 person-years). Corresponding absolute rates in men and women without diabetes were 4.9 vs. 3.1 per 100 person-years. Comparing individuals with and without diabetes, women had higher incidence rate ratio (IRR) of MACE-HF than men (IRR 2.42 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.40-2.44) in women vs. 1.99, 95% CI 1.98-2.01 in men) with a women-to-men ratio (WMR) of 1.22 (CI 1.20-1.23, p<0.001). The IRRs of MACE-HF for diabetes vs no diabetes were highest in women aged 45 and in the youngest men and decreased with advancing age for both men and women, but the IRRs were higher in women across all ages, with the highest WMR between age 45 and 70 years. This effect was more apparent for myocardial infarction (women-to-men ratio 1.43, 95%CI 1.39-1.47 after adjustment) than for ischemic stroke (WMR 1.10, 95%CI 1.07-1.13 after adjustment) or overall MACE-HF (WMR 1.16, 95%CI 1.15-1.18 after adjustment). Conclusion: Although men have higher absolute rates of cardiovascular complications, the relative rates of cardiovascular complications associated with diabetes are higher in women than in men across all ages in recent years.