(HealthDay News) — For patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D), insulin resistance is associated with the risk for stroke and death, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes, held virtually from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1.
Alexander Zabala, M.D., from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, and colleagues examined the potential association between insulin resistance as measured by estimated glucose disposal rate (eGDR) and the risk for first stroke and death in 104,697 individuals with T2D. eGDR was categorized as <4 (highest grade of insulin resistance), 4 to 5.99, 6 to 7.99, and ≥8 mg/kg/min; the association between eGDR category and the risk for stroke and death was examined.
The researchers found that there were 4,201 (4%) strokes during a median follow-up of 5.6 years. After multivariable adjustment, the hazard ratio for stroke was 0.77, 0.68, and 0.60 for an eGDR of 4 to 5.99, 6 to 7.99, and ≥8 compared with the reference of <4. For the risk for death, the corresponding hazard ratios were 0.83, 0.77, and 0.72. For each factor in the eGDR formula (hypertension, hemoglobin A1c, and waist circumference), the estimated explained relative risk for the risk for stroke was 0.045 ± 0.0024, 0.013 ± 0.0014, and 0.006 ± 0.0009, respectively.
“eGDR could be used to help T2D patients better understand and manage their risk of stroke and death,” Zabala said in a statement. “In this era of personalized medicine, better stratification of type 2 diabetes patients will help optimize clinical trials and further vital research into treatment, diagnosis, care and prevention.”
