Correlations between Glycosylated Hemoglobin and Lipid Profiles in Newly-Diagnosed Type II Diabetics

Introduction: Type II diabetes is a chronic disease which results from aspects such as complex inheritance interaction, obesity, and sedentary lifestyle. In India, diabetes is turning into an epidemic as currently, more than 62 million individuals suffer from the disease. To our knowledge, very few studies have evaluated the correlation between lipid profiles and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in newly diagnosed type II diabetes patients with hypertension. The early detection of lipid abnormalities in these patients will help prevent the cardiovascular outcomes. Objectives: To identify patterns of dyslipidemia among newly diagnosed type II diabetes mellitus (DM) patients with and without hypertension in Bengaluru (urban and rural) in Karnataka (South India); and to identify correlations between HbA1c levels and lipid profiles. Methods: This was a cross sectional study involving 194 individuals in Bengaluru, India from the period of April to December 2017. Demographics, lifestyle habits and clinical features were analyzed for the presence of any interrelationship with the occurrence of diabetic dyslipidemia. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by Tukey’s post hoc tests, Chi square and correlation studies were used to establish a significant level of association between the study parameters. Results: Among non-diabetics, prediabetics, diabetics and diabetics with hypertension, there were significant differences in lipid profiles, as well as levels total cholesterol, triglycerides, high density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), very low-density lipoprotein, ratios of cholesterol to HDL and ratios of LDL to HDL. Positive correlations were observed between HbA1c and fasting blood sugar (FBS), and random blood sugar (RBS) in non-diabetics; whereas, in prediabetics, the RBS highly correlated with HbA1c and negatively correlated with HDL. In diabetics, both fasting and random blood sugar highly correlated with HbA1c, however, no significant correlation was observed between HbA1c and any of the tested lipid profiles in non-diabetics and diabetics. A strong correlation between HbA1c and lipid profiles was established. Conclusion: An overweight diabetic man with poor glycaemic control, over the age of 46 years, having a desk job or working as a driver or businessman, with abdominal obesity, leading a sedentary lifestyle and having habits such as alcohol drinking and smoking is at high risk for developing hypertension.