Cumulative exposure to hypertriglyceridemia and risk of type 2 diabetes in young adults

Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2024 Feb:208:111109. doi: 10.1016/j.diabres.2024.111109. Epub 2024 Jan 21.

Abstract

Aim: This study aimed to examine whether cumulative exposure to hypertriglyceridemia is associated with an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes in young adults.

Methods: The study included 1,840,251 participants aged 20-39 years who had undergonefourconsecutiveannualhealth checkups and had no history of type 2 diabetes. Participants werecategorized into five groups (exposure score 0-4) based on the frequencies of hypertriglyceridemia diagnosis over a four-year period. The primary outcome was newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes. Exploratory analyses were performed for the different subgroups.

Results: During a follow-up period of 6.53 years, 40,286 participants developed type 2 diabetes. The cumulative incidence of type 2 diabetes significantly increased with higher exposure scores for hypertriglyceridemia (log-rank test, P < 0.001). The multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios for incident diabetes were 1.674 (95 % CI, 1.619, 1.732), 2.192 (95 % CI, 2.117, 2.269), 2.637 (95 % CI, 2.548, 2.73), and 3.715 (95 % CI, 3.6, 3.834) for participants with scores of 1-4, respectively, compared with those with an exposure score of 0.

Conclusions: In this large-scale prospective cohort study of young adults, cumulative exposure to hypertriglyceridemia was significantly associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, independent of lifestyle-related factors.

Keywords: Hypertriglyceridemia; Risk factor; Type 2 diabetes; Young adults.

MeSH terms

  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / epidemiology
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / etiology
  • Humans
  • Hypertriglyceridemia* / complications
  • Hypertriglyceridemia* / epidemiology
  • Incidence
  • Life Style
  • Prospective Studies
  • Risk Factors
  • Young Adult