Association between COVID-19 and incidence of cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality among patients with diabetes

INTRODUCTION: Although the risk of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection is higher in patients who are diagnosed with diabetes than in those who are not, research on the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in COVID-19 infected patients diagnosed with diabetes compared to those who are not infected by COVID-19 is lacking. This study aimed to examine the association between COVID-19, incidence of CVD, and all-cause mortality in patients with diabetes. METHODS: This study used data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment, and included 16,779 patients with COVID-19 and 16,779 matched controls between January 2017 and June 2021. The outcomes included cardiovascular disease (CVD), coronary heart disease, stroke, and all-cause mortality. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to evaluate these associations. RESULTS: Patients with diabetes hospitalized because of COVID-19 had a significantly increased risk of CVD (adjusted hazard ratio [AHR], 2.12; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.97, 2.27) than those without COVID-19. The risks of coronary heart disease (AHR, 2.00; 95% CI: 1.85, 2.17) and stroke (AHR, 2.21; 95% CI: 1.90, 2.57) were higher in the intervention group than in the control group. In the case of all-cause mortality for middle-aged adults, we observed a higher risk in diabetes patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 than in patients without COVID-19 (AHR, 1.37; 95% CI: 1.18, 1.59). CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that patients with diabetes hospitalized due to COVID-19 had an increased risk of CVD, coronary heart disease, stroke incidence, and mortality than those who were not COVID-19 infected, suggesting more careful prevention and management among patients with COVID-19.