The following is a summary of “Association Between New‐Onset Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiac Conduction Diseases: A Prospective Cohort Study,” published in the December 2023 issue of Cardiology by Zhao et al.
The research aimed to explore the correlation between type 2 diabetes and the occurrence of cardiac conduction diseases, crucial for understanding preventive measures against life-threatening outcomes. A cohort study involving 101,080 individuals without pre-existing diabetes or cardiac conduction diseases from the Kailuan Study was conducted. Over the follow-up until December 31, 2020, 14,397 participants were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Each diabetes case was matched with a control based on age and sex, resulting in 10,744 pairs analyzed. Cox regression models were employed with age as the underlying time scale. Throughout a median 5.46-year follow-up, 571 new incidents were documented, including 164 atrioventricular blocks, 414 bundle-branch blocks (BBBs), 274 right BBBs, and 210 left BBBs.
Following adjustments for potential influencing factors, participants diagnosed with type 2 diabetes exhibited elevated relative risks for most outcomes compared to controls. The hazard ratios were 1.42 (95% CI, 1.18–1.67) for conduction diseases, 1.40 (95% CI, 1.00–1.96) for atrioventricular blocks, 1.43 (95% CI, 1.16–1.75) for BBBs, and 1.69 (95% CI, 1.15–2.49) for left BBBs. However, no significant association was found between diabetes and the development of right BBB. This study demonstrates that individuals with type 2 diabetes face an increased risk of cardiac conduction diseases, excluding the development of right bundle-branch block.