Diabetes mellitus and coronary heart disease in the elderly

Data from epidemiologic studies document the role of clinically manifest diabetes mellitus as a powerful risk determinant for an array of atherosclerotic cardiovascular outcomes including coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, and peripheral arterial disease, particularly in the elderly. Although dyslipidemias and hypertension are quite prevalent in persons with diabetes mellitus and contribute heavily to the underlying atherosclerotic process, other factors involving alternative pathogenetic mechanisms are necessary to explain for the dramatic acceleration of atherogenesis observed in this condition. Myocardial ischemia may be silent and myocardial infarction (MI) may be either painless or atypical in presentation which further complicates both the diagnostic and therapeutic management of CHD in older diabetic patients. MI, in this context, is confounded by dual prognostic disadvantages of higher risk for MI-related complications attributable to both advanced age and diabetes mellitus. Because available evidence has yet to demonstrate that control of hyperglycemia, either by oral agents or by insulin, effectively forestalls either the development or complications of atherosclerosis, preventive management in older patients with diabetes requires critical attention to correcting coexisting cardiovascular risk factors.