Background: This study investigated the effects of early-onset type 2 diabetes (EOD) vs late-onset type 2 diabetes (LOD) on nonfatal cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in China.
Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 46 239 participants from 14 provinces in China from 2007 to 2008, selecting 4949 participants with type 2 diabetes for analysis. Participants were categorized as EOD (<40 years) or LOD (≥40 years) based on age at diabetes diagnosis. Sociodemographic and nonfatal CVD information was collected through an interviewer-assisted questionnaire and clinical examination. Logistic regression analysis was used to investigate the nonfatal CVD risk.
Results: Out of 4949 participants with type 2 diabetes, 390 (7.88%) had nonfatal CVD. Participants with EOD had a higher age-standardized prevalence of nonfatal CVD than those with LOD (11.4% vs 4.4%). Compared to LOD patients, EOD patients tended to be males and had a higher family history of diabetes, unhealthy lifestyle behaviors, and lower blood pressure levels. After adjustment for age and sex, EOD patients had a higher risk of nonfatal CVD than LOD patients (odds ratio [OR] 2.3, 95% CI 1.5-3.5). After further adjustment for diabetes duration, use of drugs, and other risk factors, the OR of nonfatal CVD was reduced but significant (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.1-2.9). Sensitivity analysis revealed that EOD patients with metabolic syndrome had an increased nonfatal CVD risk compared to LOD patients (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.2-3.5).
Conclusions: EOD patients are at increased risk of nonfatal CVD. Individualized intervention and management measures for EOD patients are necessary.
Keywords: China National Diabetes and Metabolic Disorders Study; cross-sectional study; early-onset type 2 diabetes; nonfatal cardiovascular disease.
© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Diabetes published by Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.