Epidemiol Health.  2021;43(1):e2021049. 10.4178/epih.e2021049.

Association between a family history of diabetes and carotid artery atherosclerosis in Korean adults

• Shim SY
• Lee GB
• Shim JS
• Jung SJ
• Kim HC

• KMID: 2522392
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2021049

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
Diabetes is a well-known risk factor for atherosclerosis, but the association between a family history of diabetes and atherosclerosis remains unknown. In this study, we assessed the association between a family history of diabetes and increased carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), a marker of subclinical atherosclerosis, in a middle-aged Korean population.
METHODS
This cross-sectional study included 3,974 community-dwelling adults (1,404 male and 2,570 female) aged 30-64 years from the Cardiovascular and Metabolic Diseases Etiology Research Center cohort. The presence of a family history of diabetes was assessed through face-to-face interviews using a standardized questionnaire. Carotid IMT was assessed using B-mode ultrasonography, and increased IMT was defined as a value in the top quartile of the IMT values of all participants. Multivariate logistic regression was used to evaluate independent associations between a family history of diabetes and increased IMT.
RESULTS
A family history of diabetes was significantly associated with increased carotid IMT (odds ratio, 1.23; 95% confidence interval, 1.03 to 1.48) after adjusting for sex; age; body mass index; systolic blood pressure; total cholesterol, triglyceride, and hemoglobin A1c levels; smoking; alcohol consumption; exercise; use of antidiabetic, antihypertensive, and antilipidemic drugs; and a family history of hypertension. The positive association remained significant after excluding participants with diabetes (odds ratio, 1.21; 95% confidence interval, 1.00 to 1.47).
CONCLUSIONS
A family history of diabetes was positively associated with increased carotid IMT, even in participants without diabetes. Therefore, information on a family history of diabetes may help identify individuals at high risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Keyword

Diabetes mellitus; Atherosclerosis; Carotid intima-media thickness; Medical history taking