Cardiometabolic Medicine: Development of a New Subspecialty

The worldwide rise in the prevalence of cardiometabolic disease, and the introduction of therapeutic options for treating metabolic disease that also lower cardiovascular risk, calls for a restructuring of how we care for patients with cardiometabolic disease. We propose establishment of a new medicine subspecialty, Cardiometabolic Medicine.

This summary is based on a synthesis of published original and review articles identified through PubMed, professional society guidelines, and the authors' knowledge of the fields of metabolism, diabetes, and cardiology.

The growing prevalence of cardiometabolic disease will continue to be perhaps the greatest challenge in the United States and throughout the world. We have entered an era where a large set of clinical tools are available that help prevent and treat cardiometabolic disease; however, our old models of clinical training and siloed care are barriers to rapid uptake and efficient healthcare delivery and are in need of change.

Establishing the field of Cardiometabolic Medicine would be a small step in the right direction towards providing the best possible comprehensive care for those with complex cardiometabolic disease.