Prevalence and incidence of heart failure in type 2 diabetes patients: results from a nationwide prospective cohort-the DIABET-IC study

Background: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients have an increased risk of heart failure (HF). There are limited data on the association between HF and T2D in specific healthcare settings. This study sought to analyse the prevalence and incidence of HF in a contemporary cohort of T2D patients attending cardiology and endocrinology outpatient clinics.

Methods: We conducted an observational multicentre prospective study (DIABET-IC) that enrolled patients with a T2D diagnosis attending cardiology and endocrinology outpatient clinics in 30 centres in Spain between 2018 and 2019. The prevalence at the start of the study and the incidence of HF after a 3 year follow-up were calculated. HF was defined as the presence of typical symptoms and either: a) LVEF < 40%; or b) LVEF ≥ 40% with elevated natriuretic peptides and echocardiographic abnormalities.

Results: A total of 1249 T2D patients were included in the present analysis (67.6 ± 10.1 years, 31.7% female). HF was present in 490 participants at baseline (prevalence 39.2%), 150 (30.6%) of whom had a preserved ejection fraction. The presence of adverse social determinants and chronic conditions such as chronic kidney disease and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease were more frequent in HF patients. During the study period, there were 58 new diagnoses of HF (incidence 7.6%) among those without baseline HF. The incidence rate was 3.0 per 100 person-years. Independent predictors of incident HF were smoking, left ventricular ejection fraction, NT-ProBNP, history of tachyarrhythmia and treatment with pioglitazone, oral anticoagulants, or diuretics. Despite an average suboptimal glycaemic control, the use of antidiabetic drugs with cardiovascular benefits was low (30.4% for sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors and 12.5% for glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists).

Conclusions: In this contemporary cohort of T2D patients attending cardiology and endocrinology outpatient clinics, the prevalence and incidence of HF were high, comorbidities were frequent, and the use of antidiabetic agents with cardiovascular benefit was low. Outpatient care seems to be a unique opportunity for a comprehensive T2D approach that encompasses HF prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.