[Lipid therapy for patients with coronary heart disease and diabetes. Current state and perspectives]

For patients with diabetes mellitus and coronary heart disease high-dose statin therapy is recommended independent of basal low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels and with a target value <70 mg/dl (1.8 mmol/l). Drug combinations which lower LDL, e.g. cholesterol absorption inhibitors, are an option. Fibrates have not been proven to have a cardiovascular advantage but these drugs could be of value in diabetic microangiopathy. A low level of high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol is the most common phenomenon in diabetes. Clinical endpoint studies for the combination with nicotinic acid were negative but therapeutic alternatives are lacking. Therefore, statin therapy is the primary lipid lowering therapy also for diabetic dyslipidemia.