20-fold Higher risk of Sudden Cardiac Death between 30 and 40 years with Type 1 Diabetes: ESC Congress 2024 - Video

Data from a Danish study presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress 2024 reveals that patients with either type of diabetes, particularly type 1, experience higher rates of sudden cardiac death (SCD) across all age groups. This increased risk highlights the need for better risk assessment for these individuals.

Their latest study investigates the impact of sudden cardiac death (SCD) on people with diabetes within the general population. It also explores how much life expectancy is reduceddue to sudden cardiac death in individuals with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

The researchers used 2010 data from the entire Danish population, which includes about 5.5 million people. They found 6,851 cases of sudden cardiac death (SCD) and matched these cases with individuals who had type 1 and type 2 diabetes based on prescription records.

They then determined the loss of life years for each group of diabetes diagnoses. For individuals with type 1 diabetes, the average age was 50 years, with 57% being men and5.5% having arrhythmia. For those with type 2 diabetes, the average age was 65 years, 52%were men, and 11% had arrhythmia. Sudden cardiac death rates were consistently higher across all age groups (from 0 to 90 years) for people with diabetes compared to the general population.

The incidence of sudden cardiac death (SCD) per 100,000 person-years indicated that type 1 diabetes is associated with a higher risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD) across all ages up to 90 years compared to the general population. Specifically, individuals with type 1 diabetes had nearly a 10-fold higher risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD) at age 30 or younger, a 20-fold higher risk between ages 30 and 40 years (95% CI, 11.8-80.0), and this risk decreases with age up to 90 years.

For type 2 diabetes, the relative risk of SCD was nearly six times higher for those up to 30 years old, about 5.6 times higher for ages 30-40 years (95% CI, 2.7-14.0), and the risk decreased with age up to 90 years.