Aims: To investigate whether long-term glycemic variability (GV) is associated with vascular complication development in type 2 diabetes.
Methods: In a post hoc FIELD trial analysis, GV was calculated as the standard deviation and coefficient of variation (CV) of glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and fasting plasma glucose. Baseline variables were compared across quartiles of on-study variability by chi square and ANOVA. Prospective associations between baseline to 2-year GV and subsequent vascular and mortality outcomes were analyzed using landmark logistic and Cox proportional hazards regression.
Results: Baseline factors associated with higher on-study GV included younger age, male gender, longer diabetes duration, and higher pharmacological therapies usage. Both HbA1c and fasting glucose CV were associated with increased risk of microvascular complications (HR 1.02 [95% CI, 1.01-1.03] P < 0.01; and HR 1.01 [95% CI, 1.00-1.01] P < 0.001, respectively). HbA1c and fasting glucose CV were associated with increased cardiovascular disease (HR 1.02 [95% CI, 1.00-1.04]; and HR 1.01 [95% CI, 1.00-1.02], both P < 0.05). HbA1c CV associated with increased stroke (HR 1.03 [95% CI, 1.01-1.06) P < 0.01). Glucose CV associated with increased coronary events (HR 1.01 [95% CI, 1.00-1.02] P < 0.05). Both HbA1c and glucose CV associated with increased total mortality (HR 1.04 [95% CI, 1.02-1.06]; and HR 1.01 [95% CI, 1.01-1.02], both P < 0.001) and noncardiovascular mortality (HR 1.05 [95% CI, (1.03-1.07]; and HR 1.02 [95% CI, 1.01-1.03], both P < 0.001). HbA1c CV associated with coronary mortality (HR 1.04 [95% CI, 1.01-1.07] P < 0.05).
Conclusions: Long-term GV was associated with increased risk of vascular outcomes in type 2 diabetes.
Keywords: type 2 diabetes; HbA1c coefficient of variation; cardiovascular disease; glucose coefficient of variation; glycemic variability; stroke; vascular complications.
Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Endocrine Society 2020.