A Contemporary Estimate of Total Mortality and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Young Adults With Type 1 Diabetes: The Pittsburgh Epidemiology of Diabetes Complications Study

Objective: The degree to which mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence remains elevated in young U.S. adults with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) is unclear. We determined contemporary rates for adults <45 years old with long-standing, childhood-onset T1DM from the Pittsburgh Epidemiology of Diabetes Complications (EDC) Study.

Research Design And Methods: Members of the EDC Study cohort <45 years old during the 1996-2012 follow-up period (n = 502) were studied. Mortality and CVD rates were calculated for those aged 30-39 and 40-44 years. Data from the background Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, population were used to calculate age- and sex-matched standardized mortality (SMR) and incidence rate ratios (IRR).

Results: In both age groups, the SMR for total mortality was ∼5 (95% CIs: 30-39-year-olds, 2.8, 7.2; 40-44-year-olds, 3.4, 7.8). CVD mortality SMRs ranged from 19 (95% CI 11, 32) to 33 (95% CI 17, 59). Hospitalized CVD IRR was ∼8 (95% CIs: 30-39-year-olds, 2.5, 18.9; 40-44-year-olds, 4.5, 12.8); revascularization procedures account for much of the increased risk. For all outcomes, the relative risk was larger in women. Participants aged 30-39 years had 6.3% (95% CI 3.8, 9.8) absolute 10-year CVD risk, approaching the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association-recommended cut point of 7.5% for initiation of statin therapy in older adults.

Conclusions: Total and CVD mortality and hospitalized CVD are all significantly increased in this contemporary U.S. cohort of young adults with long-standing T1DM. These findings support more aggressive risk factor management in T1DM, especially among women.