Variability in total cholesterol and triglyceride levels linked to diabetes complications, suggests study

A recent retrospective study published in the recent issue of Nature Scientific Reports highlighted how the variability in risk factors such as uric acid and lipid levels can influence the development of complications in the patients with type 2 diabetes.

This research was conducted at a tertiary care hospital in Chengdu from 2013 to 2022 and analyzed electronic medical records of 369 diabetic patients to explore these associations. This comprehensive study focused on the variability of risk factors that was presented as the standard deviation (SD) and its impact on the diabetic complications. The study identified key factors that contribute to the complications by employing a binary logistic regression model.

One significant finding was that outpatient special disease management served as a protective factor against the development of complications with an odds ratio (OR) of 0.53 and a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.29 to 0.10. This management approach was particularly effective in preventing diabetic peripheral neuropathy with an OR of 0.51 and a 95% CI of 0.30 to 0.86.

Also, the variability in total cholesterol levels (TC-SD) was observed to be a significant risk factor. The patients with higher variability in their cholesterol levels were more likely to develop complications with an OR of 2.42 and a 95% CI of 1.18 to 4.97. This variability also posed a specific risk for diabetic peripheral vasculopathy with an OR of 2.50 and a 95% CI of 1.25 to 5.02.