Diabetes is a significant independent risk factor for developing chronic heart failure (HF). The prevalence of diabetes in the general population is now at least 5%, and current large trials show that this is around 30% in patients with chronic HF, while it may be close to 50% in those with acute HF.
1-4 In the most recent Heart Failure Guidelines of the European Society of Cardiology the increasing importance of diabetes in HF is well recognised.
5 In the Framingham study the relative risk for developing HF was 2.36 in diabetic men aged 45 to 74 years and 5.14 in diabetic women compared with non-diabetics.
6 Patients with mild HF and diabetes have a worse prognosis than those without diabetes.
7 …
