title: QT interval prolongation and mortality in type 1 diabetic patients: a 5-year cohort prospective study. Neuropathy Study Group of the Italian Society of the Study of Diabetes, Piemonte Affiliate.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of the study was to assess the relationship between QT interval prolongation and mortality in type 1 diabetic patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data on survival after 5 years were obtained from 316 of 379 patients (83.3%) who took part in a study on the prevalence of diabetic neuropathy and QT interval prolongation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mortality at 5 years was 6.32%. Patients who survived were significantly younger (P = 0.04), had a shorter duration of diabetes (P = 0.01), had lower systolic (P = 0.004) and diastolic (P = 0.03) blood pressure levels, and had a shorter QT interval corrected for the previous cardiac cycle length (QTc) (P = 0.000005) than subjects who died. In univariate analysis, patients had a higher risk of dying if they had a prolonged QTc (odds ratio [OR] 20.14 [95% CI 5.7-70.81) or if they were affected by autonomic neuropathy (3.55 [1.4-8.9]). QTc prolongation was the only variable that showed a significant mortality OR in multivariate analysis (24.6 [6.51-92.85]; P = 0.0000004).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is the first cohort-based prospective study indicating that QTc prolongation is predictive of increased mortality in type 1 diabetic patients.
authors.affiliation: Ospedale Mauriziano Umberto I di Torino, University of Torino, Italy. veglio@onw.net
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Veglio
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sivieri
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chinaglia
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Scaglione
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cavallo-Perin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001794:Blood Pressure; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000401:mortality* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003929:Diabetic Neuropathies / Q000453:epidemiology; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012016:Reference Values