The American Diabetes Association has released its 2019 Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes (Standards of Care), which include new and revised clinical practice recommendations that provide a roadmap for therapeutic approaches and medication selection based on each patient's overall health status. The ACC has endorsed the new standards, which include updates aimed at reducing heart attacks, strokes, heart failure and other manifestations of cardiovascular disease.

"The latest evidence-based research continues to provide critical information that can optimize treatment options and improve patient outcomes and quality of life. The new 2019 Standards of Care emphasize a patient-centered approach that considers the multiple health and life factors of each person living with diabetes," said ADA's Chief Scientific, Medical and Mission Officer William T. Cefalu, MD. "We are also pleased about our close collaboration with the ACC, aligning the ADA's CVD recommendations with the ACC for the first time ever."

The Standards of care includes several important updates and additions including recommendations for greater personalization of care and the need for ongoing assessment and shared decision-making; expanded treatment recommendations for children and adolescents with type 2 diabetes; a new section on diabetes and technology, including used of telemedicine; and information on medical nutrition, as well as pharmacologic approaches and glycemic targets. On the cardiovascular front, highlights from the cardiovascular disease management chapter include:

• New language to acknowledge heart failure as a major cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in people with diabetes and the need to consider heart failure when determining optimal diabetes care
• Updated recommendations detailing the use of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors or glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists
• A new recommendation outlining the benefits of GLP-1 receptor agonists and SGLT-2 inhibitors for people with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease.
• An endorsement of the ACC's atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk calculator, the ASCVD Risk Estimator Plus, for the routine assessment of 10-year ASCVD risk in people with diabetes.

"The American College of Cardiology and the American Diabetes Association share a goal to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease that too often follows a diabetes diagnosis," said ACC Vice President Richard Kovacs, MD, FACC. "ACC is proud to stand behind this important document that will provide a roadmap for clinicians to effectively assess and manage cardiovascular disease in patients with diabetes and, in turn, save lives."

Read the complete document.

Keywords: Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2, Quality of Life, Standard of Care, Blood Glucose, Atherosclerosis, Stroke, Heart Failure, Myocardial Infarction, Renal Insufficiency, Chronic, Telemedicine, Decision Making, Sodium-Glucose Transport Proteins, Glucagon-Like Peptide 1

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