Asian Diabetic Patients Research Articles

1416P Associations between metformin and mortality risks in Asian diabetic patients with prostate cancer undergoing androgen deprivation therapy: A retrospective cohort study

Metformin is associated with lower risks of developing prostate cancer (PCa), but its association with mortality in PCa is unclear. This study examined the associations between metformin use concurrent with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and mortality risks in Asian, diabetic patients with PCa. Diabetic adults with PCa receiving any ADT attending public hospitals in Hong Kong between December 1999 and March 2021 were retrospectively identified. Patients with <6 months of medical castration without subsequent bilateral orchidectomy, <6 months of concurrent metformin use and ADT, or missing baseline HbA1c were excluded. Metformin users had ≥6 months of concurrent metformin use and ADT, while non-users had no concurrent metformin use and ADT or never used metformin. Included patients were followed up until September 2021. The primary outcome was PCa-related mortality. The secondary outcome was all-cause mortality. Inverse probability treatment weighting was used to balance covariates. 1971 patients (1284 metformin users and 687 non-users; mean age 76.2±7.8 years) were studied. Over a mean follow-up of 4.1±3.2 years, metformin users had significantly lower risks of PCa-related mortality (weighted hazard ratio (wHR) 0.49 [95% confidence interval 0.39-0.61], p<0.001) and all-cause mortality (wHR 0.53 [0.46-0.61], p<0.001), independent of diabetic control or status of chronic kidney disease. Such associations appeared stronger in patients without androgen receptor antagonist or chemotherapy use (Table).Table: 1416PWeighted comparisons of outcomes by metformin usage with subgroups for androgen receptor antagonist or chemotherapy usage. Weighted hazard ratios (wHR) [95% confidence interval (CI)] were referenced against metformin non-usersAll patientsNever received androgen receptor antagonist or chemotherapy (N=1096)Received androgen receptor antagonist or chemotherapy (N=875)p value for interactionwHR [95% CI]p valuewHR [95% CI]p valuewHR [95% CI]p valueProstate cancer-related mortality0.49 [0.39, 0.61]<0.0010.38 [0.27, 0.52]<0.0010.59 [0.43, 0.81]0.0010.017All-cause mortality0.53 [0.46, 0.61]<0.0010.48 [0.40, 0.57]<0.0010.60 [0.48, 0.75]<0.0010.048 Open table in a new tab Metformin use concurrent with ADT was associated with lower risks of mortality in Asian, diabetic patients with PCa. Its role as adjuvant therapy for PCa warrants further study.

Machine learning to predict in-hospital mortality risk among heterogenous STEMI patients with diabetes

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – National budget only. Main funding source(s): TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT FUND 1 Background Diabetes has become a major public health concern in Asia. In Malaysia, the prevalence of diabetes has escalated in adults above the age of 18, affecting 3.9 million individuals. Patients with diabetes and coronary heart disease have worse outcomes, compared with patients without diabetes who have coronary heart disease. Conventional Risk scores such as TIMI and GRACE were derived from a Western Caucasian cohort with limited data from Asian countries, despite Asia hosting 60% of the world’s population. Purpose It is important to recognize the significant features associated with in-hospital mortality risk that is population-specific in Asian diabetes patients with STEMI to achieve a reliable and effective clinical diagnosis and improved outcome. Electronic health records contain large amounts of information on patients’ medical history and are becoming invaluable research tools that could be applied to cardiovascular disease risk prediction through machine learning (ML) algorithms. With the current success of ML over conventional methods in STEMI mortality prediction, we aim to develop ML algorithms for in-hospital risk mortality in Asian patients diagnosed with DM that can be adopted for clinical predictions Methods We used registry data from the Malaysian National Cardiovascular Disease Database of 5783 patients diagnosed with DM from 2006 to 2016. Fifty parameters including demographics, cardiovascular risk, medications and clinical variables were considered. Four machine learning (ML) algorithms were constructed using a 70% registry dataset; Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Extreme Gradient Booster (XGB) and Logistic Regression (LR). Feature selections were done based on ML algorithms feature importance combined with Sequential Backward Selection (SBS). The area under the curve (AUC) was used as the performance evaluation metric. All algorithms were validated using a 30 % validation dataset and compared to the conventional TIMI risk score for STEMI. Results The best model SVM (AUC = 0.90) outperformed other ML algorithms (Figure 1) and TIMI risk score (AUC = 0.83). The best SVM model consists of 11 predictors which are Killip class, fasting blood glucose, age, systolic blood pressure, heart rate, ACE inhibitor, beta-blocker, total cholesterol, diastolic blood pressure, lower density lipoprotein, and diuretic (Figure 2). Common predictors of SVM and TIMI risk score are Killip class, age, systolic blood pressure, and heart rate. We have shown that the population-specific data mining approach for the prediction of diabetes patients’ mortality post-STEMI outperformed conventional TIMI risk score. Conclusion In the Asian multiethnic population, combination of ML approaches with features selection demonstrated promising outcomes in patients with DM that may be used for better patient prognostic than the conventional method. Abstract Figure 1: ML Best Model Performance Abstract Figure 2: Selected Predictors for ML

Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter-2 Inhibitors Improve Cardiovascular Dysfunction in Type 2 Diabetic East Asians.

In East Asians, the incidence of type 2 DM (T2DM) has increased as a result of major alterations in life. Cardiovascular problems are more likely in those with T2DM. Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors are novel insulin-independent antihyperglycemic drugs that limit renal glucose reabsorption and thereby improve glycemic control. They are used alone or in combination with insulin and other antihyperglycemic medications to treat diabetes, and they are also helpful in protecting against the progression of complications. This review has evaluated the available evidence not only on the efficacy of SGLT2 inhibitors in T2DM, but also on their favourable cardiovascular events in East Asians. DM is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. As a result, in addition to glycemic control in diabetes management, the therapeutic goal in East Asian diabetic patients should be to improve adverse cardiovascular outcomes. Besides establishing antidiabetic effects, several studies have reported cardioprotective benefits of SGLT2 inhibitors via numerous pathways. SGLT2 inhibitors show promising antidiabetic drugs with potential cardiovascular advantages, given that a high number of diabetic patients in East Asia have co-existing cardiovascular disorders. Despite significant positive results in favour of SGLT2, more research is needed to determine how SGLT2 inhibitors exert these impressive cardiovascular effects.

Translational research on human pancreatic β-cell mass expansion for the treatment of diabetes.

The structural, functional, and pathological differences between human islets and rodent islets, such as mouse or rat islets, have been clarified, and research using human islets is becoming more important for elucidating the pathophysiology of diabetes and developing therapeutic strategies for diabetes. Increasing the functional human β-cell mass is a feasible method for the treatment of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The glucokinase-mediated glucose signaling pathway is known to promote β-cell proliferation not only in rodent models but also in humans. However, little is known about the signaling components of glucose- or glucokinase-mediated signaling pathways. Studies have gradually revealed the involvement of ER stress-related molecules, cell cycle regulators, inflammatory proteins, extracellular matrix proteins, and neurotransmitters in the glucokinase-mediated signaling pathway in β-cells. Unraveling the mechanisms of those molecules in the regulation of human β-cell mass will provide new insights into how the functional β-cell mass can be increased. The human islet distribution program is essential for human islet research. However, human islets for research are only available by import from Europe and America into Japan or Asia. Since Japanese or Asian diabetes patients possibly show different features compared with European or American diabetes patients, studies using human islets from Japanese or Asian populations have become important for the elucidation of pathophysiology in these specific population groups. This review outlines new pathways important for the regulation of human pancreatic β-cell mass and expectations regarding the establishment of a human islet distribution program in Japan.

CURRENT STATE TO THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES AT HOSPITAL OF VINH YEN CITY

A cross-sectional study was conducted by using the Asian Diabetes Patients questionnaire (AsianDQOL) aims to describe the quality of life of 357 357 outpatient patients with type 2 diabetes at Vinh Yen City Medical Center, Vinh Phuc in 2018. Results: On a scale of 100, the general QOL score was 62.79±7.69, the highest score was financial sector (82.02±12.2), next was mental health (81.3±21.13), diet (55,73±10,23) and physical health (45,75±23,64), the lowest score was personal relationships (31,26±12,25). Ranking the QOL status of the patients, we have: 1 st was upper-intermediate, 2 nd was low intermediate and pre-advance, the last was poor grade.

The Different Cardiovascular Outcomes Between Long-Term Efficacy of Hydrophilic and Lipophilic Statin Therapy in Both Asian Diabetic Sexes.

Purpose:To evaluate the long-term efficacy of hydrophilic and lipophilic statin therapy for cardiovascular outcomes in Asian diabetic patients.Method:Newly diagnosed cases of type 2 diabetes during the period from January 2000 to December 2011 were divided into 2 cohorts on the basis of their statin use, namely hydrophilic statin and lipophilic statin. We used Cox proportional hazard regression models to analyze the risks of cardiovascular outcomes.Result:In this study, 12 896 patients used statin, including 4259 patients using hydrophilic statin and 8637 patients using lipophilic statin. With 12-year follow-up, higher incidence rate of coronary artery disease and stroke was noted in the lipophilic statin use instead of hydrophilic statin use.Conclusion:According to our long-term cohort study, hydrophilic statin use may be a better choice than lipophilic statin to reduce cardiovascular events in Asian diabetic patients.

Basal insulin therapy: Unmet medical needs in Asia and the new insulin glargine in diabetes treatment.

Diabetes remains a global epidemic and a tremendous health challenge, especially in the Asian population. Dramatic increases in the prevalence of diabetes across different countries or areas in Asia have been reported in recent epidemiological studies. Although clinical guidelines have strengthened appropriate antihyperglycemic medications and lifestyle modifications for optimal diabetes management, inadequate glycemic control still occurs in many patients with an increased risk of developing microvascular and macrovascular complications. Insulin administration is the main therapy for diabetes in response to the inability to secrete insulin, and is recommended in current guidelines to treat patients with type 2 diabetes after failure of oral antidiabetic drugs. Clinical studies have shown that long‐acting insulin analogs improve basal glycemic control with reduced risk of hypoglycemia. In the present review, we discuss previous challenges with basal insulin therapy in Asia, the pharmacological development of insulin analogs to overcome the unmet medical needs and recent clinical studies of the new ultra‐long‐acting insulin analog, insulin glargine U300. Furthermore, relevant findings of current real‐world evidence are also included for the comparison of the efficacy and safety of different insulin formulations. Based on the accumulating evidence showing a low incidence of hypoglycemia and technical benefits of dose titration, treatment with glargine U300 can be a promising strategy for Asian diabetes patients to achieve glycemic targets with favorable safety.

The combination therapy of basal insulin and lixisenatide in Asian diabetic patients

The pathophysiology of Asian diabetic patients differs from that in Western patients. However, the majority of studies for treatment in type 2 diabetes have been performed predominantly in Western populations, and the researches in Chinese or Asian patients are limited. We discuss the mechanisms of different glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist(GLP-1RA), and describe the available clinical data for the treatment of basal insulin in combination with the short-acting GLP-1RA lixisenatide, especially for Asian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.The current paper is a Chinese translation of a review entitled as What next after basal insulin? Treatment intensification with lixisenatide in Asian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus published in 《Journal of Diabetes》 (2017, 9: 562-574) with the permission from the the journal. (Chin J Endocrinol Metab, 2017, 33: 790-797) Key words: Insulin; Lixisenatide; Diabetes mellitus, type 2

The optimal cut-off of blood pressure related to left ventricular diastolic dysfunction and remodeling in Asian diabetic patients

BackgroundAlthough a recent randomized trial found no difference between intensive and standard blood pressure (BP) control in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM), the debate over the optimal BP target continues. Thus, the present study investigated the effect of BP on the subclinical left ventricular (LV) function and structural changes in diabetic patients. MethodA total of 2649 patients with DM who received echocardiography were enrolled in this study. Study population was stratified by three groups according to BP and presence of hypertension (normal, <130/80mmHg; prehypertension, ≥130/80mmHg without hypertension; hypertension, ≥140/90mmHg or history of hypertension). The odds ratios (ORs) of impaired LV diastolic function and LV remodeling were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression analysis. The adjusted mean values of echocardiographic parameters related to LV diastolic function and remodeling were also evaluated. ResultWhen normal group was set as reference, the adjusted ORs [95% confidential interval (CI)] for impaired LV diastolic function was 2.45 (95% CI 1.84–3.24) in prehypertension, 3.51 (95% CI 2.57–4.80) in hypertension group. Adjusted ORs for LV remodeling only showed significant result in hypertension group [1.82 (95% CI 1.23–2.69)]. The adjusted mean value of LV diastolic function and structure also demonstrated LV deterioration in prehypertension and hypertension groups. ConclusionOur study showed the adverse influence of prehypertension and hypertension on subclinical LV deterioration. This finding suggested the potential clinical benefits of intensive BP control (<130/80mmHg) in patients with DM.

Impact of pharmacist-involved collaborative care on the clinical, humanistic and cost outcomes of high-risk patients with type 2 diabetes (IMPACT): a randomized controlled trial.

With the increasing prevalence of diabetes, the physician-centred model is challenged to deliver holistic care in Asia. Diabetes may be managed effectively within a multidisciplinary collaborative care model; however, evidence on its effectiveness in Asian patients is lacking. Therefore, the primary objective was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of multidisciplinary collaborative care vs physician-centred care in diabetes. The secondary objectives were to evaluate humanistic and economic outcomes among the two types of care. This 6-month prospective, open-label, parallel-arm, randomized, controlled study was conducted at four outpatient healthcare institutions. High-risk patients aged ≥21years with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes, polypharmacy and comorbidities were included. Patients with type 1 diabetes or those who were unable to communicate independently were excluded. The control arm received usual care with referrals to nurses and dietitians as needed. The intervention arm (multidisciplinary collaborative care) was followed up with pharmacists regularly, in addition to receiving the usual care. The primary outcomes included HbA1c, systolic blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein and triglycerides. The secondary outcomes included scores from the Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID) and the Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaires (DTSQ), and diabetes-related health service utilization rates and costs. Of 411 eligible patients, 214 and 197 patients were randomized into the intervention and control arms, respectively. At 6months, 141 patients in the intervention arm (65.9%) and 189 patients in the control arm (95.9%) completed the study. Mean HbA1c reduced from 8.6%±1.5% at baseline to 8.1%±1.3% at 6 months in the intervention arm (P=.04), with up to mean HbA1c improvement of 0.8% in patients with greater levels of uncontrolled glycemia. Whereas the mean HbA1c in the control arm remained unchanged (8.5%±1.4%) throughout the 6-month period. Improvements in PAID and DTSQ scores, reduction in physician workload and an average cost savings of US$91.01 per patient were observed in the intervention arm over 6months. The positive clinical, humanistic and economic outcomes highlighted the value of multidisciplinary collaborative care for Asian diabetic patients, thereby supporting the effectiveness of this approach in managing chronic diseases.

Disparities in Diabetes Care Quality by English Language Preference in Community Health Centers.

To conduct a parallel analysis of disparities in diabetes care quality among Latino and Asian community health center (CHC) patients by English language preference. Clinical outcomes (2011) and patient survey data (2012) for Type 2 diabetes adults from 14 CHCs (n=1,053). We estimated separate regression models for Latino and Asian patients by English language preference for Clinician & Group-Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and System, Patient Assessment of Chronic Illness Care, hemoglobin A1c, and self-reported hypoglycemic events. We used the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition method to parse out observed and unobserved differences in outcomes between English versus non-English language groups. After adjusting for socioeconomic and health characteristics, disparities in patient experiences by English language preference were found only among Asian patients. Unobserved factors largely accounted for linguistic disparities for most patient experience measures. There were no significant differences in glycemic control by language for either Latino or Asian patients. Given the importance of patient retention in CHCs, our findings indicate opportunities to improve CHC patients' experiences of care and to reduce disparities in patient experience by English preference for Asian diabetes patients.

S15-2 - Individualized blood pressure targets in Asian diabetic patients with or without nephropathy

S15-2 - Individualized blood pressure targets in Asian diabetic patients with or without nephropathy

Stroke recurrence among South Asians with diabetes in Ontario, Canada.

Background South Asians have more vascular risk factors, earlier cardiovascular disease onset, and higher stroke mortality than non-South Asians. However, ethnic differences in long-term outcomes post-stroke in diabetics are unclear. Aims We compared cardiovascular outcome risk after first ischemic stroke between South Asian and non-South Asian diabetics. Methods Using population-based health care databases in Ontario, Canada, we selected all patients with diabetes hospitalized with first ischemic stroke between 1 April 2002 and 31 March 2012, and assigned South Asian versus non-South Asian ethnicity using a validated surname algorithm. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis estimated survival functions, and competing risk models estimated hazards of death, stroke, and myocardial infarction. The primary predictor was ethnicity, and models were adjusted for demographics and vascular risk factors. Sensitivity analysis including adjustment for medication use was performed in those aged ≥65 years. Results There were 25,495 diabetics with first ischemic stroke; 840 were South Asian. South Asians were younger, more often male, had lower income, and had shorter Ontario residency compared to non-South Asians. South Asians had higher incidence and cumulative risk of recurrent stroke. In fully adjusted competing risk models, recurrent stroke rate was increased among South Asians compared to non-South Asians (HR 1.17 [95% CI 1.00-1.38]) in the whole cohort and in those aged ≥65 years, both with adjustment for medication use (HR 1.23 [1.01-1.50]) and without (1.27 [1.04-1.54]). Conclusions In this large population-based study, South Asian diabetic stroke patients had higher recurrent stroke rates compared to non-South Asians, despite a younger age profile. Further research is needed to reduce stroke burden in South Asians.

Lower Circulating Irisin Level in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Studies measuring circulating irisin levels in patients with insulin resistance conditions such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have achieved controversial results. Our systematic review and meta-analysis aim to assess the circulating irisin levels in patients with diabetes mellitus. Pubmed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, ISI Web of Science, and CNKI were searched to identify observational studies of circulating irisin levels in patients with diabetes mellitus. Two reviewers independently searched the databases and screened studies according to the inclusion criteria. Data were extracted using a standardized collection form. Meta-analysis was performed. A total of 23 studies (17 cross-sectional and 6 case control) involving 1 745 diabetic patients and 1 337 non-diabetic controls were selected. Compared with non-diabetic controls, circulating irisin concentrations were significantly lower in patients with T2DM (SMD -1.72, 95%CI -2.49, -0.96; p<0.00001) and GDM (SMD -0.76, 95CI -1.31, -0.22; p=0.006), but 30 percent higher in patients with T1DM. Circulating irisin in Asian diabetic patients decreased more than European patients. The findings of our current review suggest that circulating irisin levels were decreased in patients with T2DM and GDM, but not in patients with T1DM.

Effects of smoking and its cessation on creatinine- and cystatin C-based estimated glomerular filtration rates and albuminuria in male patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: the Fukuoka Diabetes Registry.

Cigarette smoking is an important modifiable risk factor for lifestyle diseases. The smoking rate remains high, and the prevalence of diabetes mellitus is increasing in Asian countries; however, few studies have examined the effects of smoking on chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Asian diabetic patients. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between smoking and its cessation with CKD and its components in patients with type 2 diabetes. A total of 2770 Japanese male patients with type 2 diabetes aged ⩾20 years were divided according to the amount of cigarette smoking and the years since cessation. The associations with CKD, the urinary albumin-creatinine ratio (UACR) and the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were cross-sectionally examined. The proportions of CKD and the mean UACR dose-dependently increased with increases in both the number of cigarettes per day and the Brinkman index compared with the never smokers. The creatinine-based eGFR also increased with increases in the amount of smoking, whereas the cystatin C-based eGFR decreased, and their average did not significantly change. These parameters exhibited inverse associations with the years after smoking cessation compared with the association with the amount of smoking. A dose-dependent association of active smoking and a graded inverse association of the years since quitting with CKD enhance the merit of smoking cessation in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Axial BMD in Diabetic and Nondiabetic Southeast Asians with HIP Fractures: Do Race and Body Mass Index Matter?

Obesity is less prevalent in Asian subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in contrast to Caucasians. Whether higher axial bone mineral density (BMD) often reported in T2DM is independent of body mass index (BMI) has not been clearly shown. BMD characterization in T2DM patients with hip fractures has also not been performed. We compared the BMD of Asian diabetic and nondiabetic patients with new hip fractures and explored how BMD was influenced by BMI. We included 255 diabetic and 148 nondiabetic patients. BMD adjusted for age; BMI; race; sex; renal function; and use of statins, proton pump inhibitors, steroids, anticonvulsants, and calcium and/or vitamin D supplements were compared between the groups. We were particularly interested in the BMD comparison between underweight diabetics and nondiabetics with hip fractures. The presence of T2DM was associated with higher BMD (g/cm(2)) at the femoral neck (0.527 ± 0.103 vs. 0.491 ± 0.102, P<.01) and lumbar spine [LS] (0.798 ± 0.147 vs. 0.723 ± 0.156, P<.01). This association persisted after adjustment for multiple confounding variables including BMI. The age-, BMI-, and sex-adjusted LS BMD was higher in underweight (BMI <18.5 kg/m(2)) diabetics compared to similar weight nondiabetics (0.733 ± 0.126 vs. 0.649 ± 0.131 g/cm(2), P = .014). T2DM is independently associated with higher axial BMD in patients with new hip fractures. The finding of higher BMD even in underweight diabetics with hip fractures compared to their nondiabetic counterparts suggests that higher BMD in subjects with T2DM is not due to higher BMI. BMD = bone mineral density BMI = body mass index CV = coefficient of variation DXA = dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry HbA1c = glycated hemoglobin IGF-1 = insulin growth factor-1 LS = lumbar spine 25(OH)D = 25-hydroxyvitamin D T2DM = type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Meta-analysis of association between K469E polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene and retinopathy in type 2 diabetes.

To collectively evaluate the association of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) gene K469E polymorphism (rs5498) with diabetic retinopathy (DR) in patients with type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM). Overall review of available literatures relating K469E polymorphism to the risk of DR was conducted on 4 electronic databases. Meta-analysis was performed by Stata 12.0 to calculate pooled odds ratios (ORs). Potential sources of heterogeneity and bias were explored. Seven studies with genotype frequency data including 1120 cases with DR and 956 diabetic controls free of DR were included. Meta-analysis did not show significant association of K469E polymorphism with DR (P>0.05). A statistically significant association was detected between the K469E polymorphism and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) in Asians only in dominant model (GG+AG vs AA) with pooled OR of 0.729 (95%CI: 0.564-0.942, P=0.016, P heterogeneity=0.143), however, this association was not detected in recessive model (GA+AA vs GG; OR=1.178, 95%CI: 0.898-1.545, P=0.236, P heterogeneity=0.248) or allelic model (G vs A; OR=0.769, 95% CI: 0.576-1.026, P=0.074, P heterogeneity=0.094). No publication bias was found by Funnel plot, Begg's and Egger's test. This research found no statistically significant association between ICAM-1 gene K469E polymorphism and DR in patients with T2DM, but showed significant association of the K469E polymorphism with PDR in Asian diabetic patients only in dominant model. Further investigation would be required to consolidate the conclusion.

Body mass index and triglyceride-to-HDL-cholesterol ratio in relation to risk of diabetes: The Nagasaki Islands study

Body mass index (BMI) is well known as an independent risk factor for insulin resistance. In addition, lower BMI and lower insulin levels are recognized as specific characteristics of Asian diabetes patients. Since the triglyceride-to-HDL-cholesterol ratio (TG-HDL) is positively associated with insulin level, but inversely associated with insulin sensitivity, we supposed that diabetes combined with high but not with low TG-HDL might be positively associated with BMI. We therefore conducted a cross-sectional study of 2,431 Japanese subjects (905 men and 1,526 women) aged 30-79 years, who underwent a general health check, to investigate associations between BMI, diabetes and its subtypes that we defined on the basis of TG-HDL levels, which in turn were categorized according to sex-specific tertiles. Among the 172 diabetic patients identified in the study group, 45 showed low TG-HDL and 82 high TG-HDL. We found a significant inverse association between low-TG-HDL diabe tes and BMI, and a significant positive association between high-TG-HDL diabetes and BMI. The multivariable-adjusted odds ratio and 95%CI for a 1SD increment in BMI (3.03 kg/m 2 for men and 3.44 kg/m 2 for women) for low-TG-HDL diabetes was 0.53 (95%CI: 0.36-0.77) and 1.57 (95%CI: 1.24-2.01) for high-TG-HDL diabetes. These findings demonstrated that for Japanese subjects associations between diabetes and BMI are strongly influenced by the TG-HDL status. Since a previous study of ours found that diabetes combined with high TG-HDL ratios constitutes a risk for atherosclerosis, these findings may serve as an effective tool for estimating risk of atherosclerosis for diabetes patients. ACTA MEDICA NAGASAKIENSIA 58: 85−91, 2013

The Role of Triglyceride in Cardiovascular Disease in Asian Patients with Type 2 Diabetes - A Systematic Review

In Asian populations, diabetes mellitus is increasing and has become an important health problem in recent decades. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the most important complications and the most common cause of death in diabetic patients. Among the risk factors of CVD, elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol has been a major concern. Studies suggested that serum triglyceride may also play a role in predicting CVD in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, but the association is still debated. In this review, we summarized published studies focusing on the relationship between serum triglyceride and CVD disease in Asian diabetic patients. Ten studies conducted in six different Asian countries (three from Hong Kong, two from Taiwan, tow from Japan, one from Indonesia, one from South India, and one from South Korea) were summarized and discussed. CVD was subdivided into coronary heart disease, stroke, and peripheral arterial disease. Of the ten studies analyzed, one focused on CVD, five on coronary heart disease, three on stroke, three on peripheral arterial disease, and one on mortality from CVD. Studies from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan suggested that triglyceride is a significant and independent risk factor for coronary heart disease, but not a significant risk factor for stroke (studies conducted in Japan and South Korea) or peripheral arterial disease (studies conducted in Taiwan, Indonesia, and South India). Although serum triglyceride may be a significant risk factor for coronary heart disease in Asian diabetic patients, clinical trials evaluating whether lowering triglycerides using fibrates can reduce the risk of coronary heart disease in these patients need to be initiated.

Does nondiabetic renal disease exacerbate diabetic nephropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes?

Does nondiabetic renal disease exacerbate diabetic nephropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes?