Prediabetes and cardiovascular diseases: a serious but overlooked issue

Abstract

The elevated risk of cardiovascular diseases and prediabetes is a practical area of concern although there is dearth of data coming from across the globe despite epidemiological studies connecting the duo. Recent meta-analysis in BMJ reported relative risk of 1.15 for a composite of cardiovascular disease and 1.16 for ischaemic heart disease in the prediabetic population as opposed to that in the population with normal sugar levels. A recent research placed a 25% elevated risk of myocardial infarction in the prediabetic population along with greater chances of undergoing various forms of revascularization. Prediabetes although defined by numbers and classified as IFG (Impaired fasting glucose) and IGT (Impaired glucose tolerance), debates still exit on the cutoffs to be used and also on use of HbA1C to define prediabetes. Recent Chinese study looked at age specific cut offs for the interplay between prediabetes and elevated cardiovascular disease risk and found family history as an important pointer in the younger age group and life style factors to be of importance in older age group. More research and studies encompassing the global population at large needs to be done to eliminate the population bias involved in a nationwide studies, with insights into the Sirtuin proteins SRT1- 7 and its modulators, whose impact on cardiovascular disease is well established.