Untreated Type 2 Diabetes and Its Complications Are Associated With Subcortical Infarctions

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association of type 2 diabetes with subcortical infarctions. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We investigated this association in subjects with type 2 diabetes (case subjects; n = 93) and without type 2 diabetes (control subjects; n = 186), matched by age, sex, and years of education. Participants were a subset of the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging (median age 79 years) who had undergone magnetic resonance imaging. RESULTS: The frequency of subcortical infarctions was 39% in case subjects and 29% in control subjects (odds ratio 1.59 [95% CI 0.91–2.75]). The association was stronger in case subjects without treatment (2.60 [1.11–6.08]) and in case subjects with diabetes-related complications (1.96 [1.02–3.74]) compared with control subjects. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that untreated type 2 diabetes and type 2 diabetes with complications are associated with subcortical infarctions.