Objective: To examine 18-year trends in early A1C and lipid control among patients initiating first-time glucose-lowering drug therapy (GLD) for type 2 diabetes.

Materials and Methods: Population-based sequential cross-sectional study using healthcare databases covering Northern Denmark (∼1.8 million persons). For all 94,175 GLD initiators during 2000-2017, we examined likelihood of A1C and lipid testing, antilipid therapy, and 1-year glycemic and LDL cholesterol target achievement.

Results: The proportion of patients with at least one A1C test increased from 53% in 2000 to 95% in 2017 (Figure, Panel A). Lipid testing increased from 82% to 98% and lipid lowering therapy initiation quintupled from 12% to 61%. Mean pre-treatment A1C declined substantially, from 9.2% (77 mmol/mol) to 7.3% (56 mmol/mol) in 2011, then rose to 7.9% (63 mmol/mol) in 2017 (Panel B). Post-treatment A1C decreased less; pre- and post-treatment LDL cholesterol declined similarly. The proportion of patients achieving glycemic and cholesterol targets increased substantially over time (Panel C).

Conclusion: Monitoring and treatment of A1C and cholesterol in early type 2 diabetes have improved considerably over the past 18 years, while quality improvement was somewhat flat after the 2011 change in diagnostic criteria.

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Disclosure

J.S. Knudsen: None. D.R. Witte: None. A. Hulman: None. P.F. Rønn: Research Support; Self; Amgen AB. Stock/Shareholder; Spouse/Partner; Novo Nordisk A/S. T. Lauritzen: Advisory Panel; Self; AstraZeneca. Board Member; Self; Novo Nordisk A/S. H.T. Sôrensen: None. R.W. Thomsen: None.

Funding

Aarhus University

© 2019 by the American Diabetes Association.
2019
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