Patterns and predictors of statin prescription in patients with type 2 diabetes

The benefit of statins for prevention of cardiovascular events in type 2 diabetes is established, but a gap exists between guideline recommendations and clinical practice. The aim of the study was to identify patient-related factors predicting statin prescription.

We assessed the quality of care in 51,640 patients with type 2 diabetes in a German diabetes registry. Patients were stratified according to primary and secondary prevention. Five-year risk for cardiovascular events was calculated in primary prevention patients. A multivariate adjusted logistic regression model was constructed to determine which parameters influenced statin prescription.

34% had established atherosclerotic disease and 25.5% received a statin. Prescription was significantly higher in the secondary compared to the primary prevention group (38.1% [95% CI 37.4–38.9%] vs. 18.5% [95% CI 18.0–19.0%], respectively). In primary prevention the odds for statin prescription increased with estimated cardiovascular risk (OR 1.17 per 5% increase in 5-year risk, 95% CI 1.11–1.22). Positive predictors for statin prescription were secondary prevention, hypertension, former smoking, baseline LDL-cholesterol, and microalbuminuria. The odds of receiving a statin had an inverted U-shaped relation with age (nadir, 66 years), age at first diagnosis of diabetes (nadir, 56 years), and body mass index (nadir, 32 kg/m²). The model predicted prescription in 70% of the patients correctly.

The majority of patients with type 2 diabetes are not receiving statins. The predominant factors determining statin prescription are the patient's prevention status and, in primary prevention, estimated cardiovascular risk. The results suggest that although physicians are aware of the general concept of cardiovascular risk, they fail to consistently implement guidelines.