Diabesity and cardiovascular mortality in a prospective population cohort followed for more than 20 years

Control of the main cardiovascular risk factors had succeeded in reducing cardiovascular diseases (CVD). However, the general increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) and obesity has slowed this decline. Both CVRFs are strongly associated, and the term diabesity has been coined to refer to this relationship. The main objective of this study was to assess the influence of diabesity on cardiovascular mortality.

Prospective cohort study involving 1246 individuals (54.3% women) followed for 20.9 years (SD=7.31) and selected by random two-stage sampling in a province in southeastern Spain. Diabesity was defined as the combination of DM2 with overweight and obesity. Survival curves (Kaplan-Meier) were calculated and two Cox regression models were used, one unadjusted and the other adjusted by the main explanatory variables in which the diabesity variable consisted of 6 categories (normal weight, overweight, obesity, normal weight+DM2, overweight+DM2 and obesity+DM2).

There were 95 deaths due to CV causes (7.6% of the total; 6.2% women and 9.3% men; p=0.01). After adjustment, the combination of DM2 and overweight increased the incidence of cardiovascular mortality by 133% (HR=2.33; 95% CI: 1.18-4.58; p=0.014) and the combination of DM2 and obesity by 49% (HR=1.49; 95% CI: 0.64-3.45; p=0.351), not reaching statistical significance in the latter case.

In the general population, the results of our study show that the combination of overweight and DM2 is associated with higher CV mortality. It seems a priority to intervene intensively in the control of both overweight and DM2.