Risque cardiovasculaire associé au diabète selon le sexe : pourquoi un excès de risque relatif chez les femmes diabétiques ?

The mortality related to cardiovascular disease exceeds breast cancer mortality in women at all ages, including after menopause. Diabetic women have lost the protective effect of female sex hormones before menopause. Compelling recent evidence suggest that women with diabetes have an increased risk of incident fatal and nonfatal coronary heart disease and of stroke as well. This excess risk could be related to a more deleterious cardiovascular risk profile, possible sex differences in medication use or greater levels of adiposity at the time of the diagnosis among diabetic and pre-diabetic women as compared to male counterparts. These findings highlight the importance of specific intervention with increased screening and early implementation of cardiovascular protective measures in hyperglycemic women.