[Dyslipemia in type-2 diabetes. A risk factor for macroangiopathy?].

OBJECTIVE

To study the association of dyslipemia with macroangiopathy in patients with type II diabetes mellitus.

DESIGN

Descriptive crossover study.

SETTING

An urban health district with a socially and economically depressed elderly population.

PATIENTS

A randomised sample among the diabetics registered in the health district (n = 449).

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

Different factors in the lipidic profile were studied, as was the presence of diabetic macroangiopathy and some of the associated risk factors. The following were considered cut-off figures with a predictive value of cardiovascular risk: overall cholesterol >or= 240 mg/dl (40% of the sample), HDL < 35 mg/dl (27%), LDL >or= 160 mg/dl (43%), triglycerides >or= 200 mg/dl (25%), atherogenic index >or= 4.5 (73%) and HDL/LDL balance >or= 0.2 (83%). 85.5% of the diabetics in the sample presented one of the lipidic disorders mentioned above. In the multivariant analysis only hypertriglyceridaemia was associated with a higher prevalence of peripheral vasculopathy.

CONCLUSIONS

A high percentage of patients with type II DM presented disorders in their lipidic profile. But, unlike the norm in the general population, only hypertriglyceridaemia displayed a statistically significant association with diabetic macroangiopathy. The role of the other dyslipemic factors was limited.