Newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes (T2D) increases 10-year cardiovascular disease risk in women and men and across all age groups, with accelerated earlier development in younger patients, according to a study published Oct. 9 in JACC.

Christine Gyldenkerne, et al., conducted a cohort study with all Danish patients diagnosed with T2D between 2006 and 2013 (n=142,587) who were sex- and age-matched with individuals from the general population (n=388,410). None had prior atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. The main outcome was cardiovascular disease, defined as a composite of nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke and fatal cardiovascular disease, with each outcome assessed individually.

Results showed there were 52,471 cardiovascular disease events at 10 years. Furthermore, patients diagnosed with diabetes had an increased 10-year risk of cardiovascular disease, and this risk occurred ≤12 earlier in patients who were diagnosed at a younger age. Those who were aged 40 to 49 years at T2D diagnosis had the largest difference in 10-year risk (6.1% vs. 3.3% for the general population; subdistribution hazard ratio [HR], 1.91; 95% CI: 1.76-2.07).

A substantial difference between cohorts for the age at which a given 10-year risk was reached. For example, in men with and without T2D, a 5% risk was reached at age 43 compared with age 55. Among women with and without T2D, a 5% was reached at ages 51 and 61, respectively.

The authors write that their “data indicate that all patients with newly diagnosed T2D should be considered at high cardiovascular disease risk” and that “intensified preventive interventions should therefore be considered to reduce the excess cardiovascular disease risk and healthy life-years lost among these patients.”

In an accompanying editorial comment, Michael J. Blaha, MD, MPH, and Michael Khorsandi, MD, note that “we must adapt to team-based treatment of obesity and the early cardiovascular manifestations of T2D” and that these data remind us that “we have entered an era where metabolic disease must be a part of cardiologists’ education and practice.”