Low grade inflammation with high blood sugar increases death risk

China: Serum hs-CRP can predict 10-year all-cause mortality in Chinese adults with hyperglycemia, according to a recent study in the journal Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice. This suggests that there is a need for giving more attention on the impact of low-grade inflammation on mortality in people with type 2 diabetes.

Studies in the past have established high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), a biomarker of inflammation, as an independent predictor for CAD.

Guangwei Li, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China, and colleagues examine whether high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) can predict all-cause death in Chinese adults with hyperglycemia. A high level of CRP in the blood is a marker of inflammation.

The researchers recruited 237 diabetes and 49 prediabetes evolved from the participants with impaired glucose tolerance in the original Da Qing Diabetes Study. Blood hs-CRP level was measured at 2006. Ten-year death outcome was traced from 2006 to 2016. The association between hs-CRP level and the risk of all-cause death occurred over the subsequent 10 years was analyzed using the Cox model. 

Key findings of the study include:

"Serum hs-CRP was predictive of 10-year all-cause death in Chinese adults with hyperglycemia, suggesting the impact of low-grade inflammation on mortality deserves more attention," concluded the authors. 

The research titled, "Prediction of 10-year mortality using hs-CRP in Chinese people with hyperglycemia: Findings from the Da Qing diabetes prevention outcomes study," is published in the journal Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice.

DOI: https://www.diabetesresearchclinicalpractice.com/article/S0168-8227(21)00021-8/fulltext