Independent association of estimated pulse-wave velocity with all-cause mortality in individuals with type 2 diabetes

• Published in: QJM : An International Journal of Medicine Vol. 117; no. 7; pp. 495 - 502
• Main Authors: Solini, Anna, Orsi, Emanuela, Vitale, Martina, Garofolo, Monia, Resi, Veronica, Bonora, Enzo, Fondelli, Cecilia, Trevisan, Roberto, Vedovato, Monica, Nicolucci, Antonio, Penno, Giuseppe, Pugliese, Giuseppe
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01-07-2024
• ISSN: 1460-2725; 1460-2393; 1460-2393
• DOI: 10.1093/qjmed/hcae012

Estimated pulse wave velocity (ePWV), a surrogate measure of arterial stiffness, was shown to independently predict morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease and other causes in both the general population and high-risk individuals. However, in people with type 2 diabetes, it is unknown whether ePWV adds prognostic information beyond the parameters used for calculating it.
To assess the independent association of ePWV with all-cause mortality in individuals with type 2 diabetes.
Prospective cohort study that enrolled 15,773 patients in 19 Italian centres in 2006-2008.
ePWV was calculated from a regression equation using age and mean blood pressure (BP). All-cause mortality was retrieved for 15,656 patients in 2015.
Percentage and rate of deaths, Kaplan-Meier estimates, and unadjusted hazard ratios increased from quartile I to quartile IV of ePWV. After adjustment for age, sex, BP levels and anti-hypertensive treatment, the strength of association decreased but mortality risk remained significantly higher for quartiles II (+34%), III (+82%), and IV (+181%) versus quartile I and was virtually unchanged when further adjusting for other cardiovascular risk factors and complications/comorbidities. Each m·s - 1 increase in ePWV was associated with an increased adjusted risk of death in the whole cohort (+53%) and in participants with (+52%) and without (+65%) cardiorenal complications. Moreover, ePWV significantly improved prediction of mortality risk over cardiovascular risk factors and complications/comorbidities, though the net increase was modest.
These findings suggest that ePWV may represent a simple and inexpensive tool for providing prognostic information beyond traditional cardiovascular risk factors.
ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00715481, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00715481.