High prevalence of dyslipidaemia despite adequate glycaemic control in patients with diabetes.

Forty-seven patients with newly diagnosed diabetes were followed up for 1 year with lipid parameters (total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein [LDL] cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein [HDL] cholesterol and triglycerides) and glycated haemoglobin measured at diagnosis and 6-monthly intervals. The prevalence of these lipid parameters exceeding the risk level for coronary heart disease at diagnosis ranged from 34% to 64%, the commonest dyslipidaemic pattern being hypercholesterolaemia (43%), followed by mixed hyperlipidaemia (17%) and hypertriglyceridaemia (17%). There was no improvement in the lipids profile over a 1-year period despite achieving good glycaemic control in both the insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) patients. Twenty-four (51%) patients will need lipid lowering treatment because of persistent dyslipidaemia despite adequate non-pharmacologic measures. We suggest that an active strategy of early detection and drug treatment for dyslipidaemia is needed for patients with diabetes mellitus.