title: Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease among patients with type 2 diabetes in Basrah.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the frequency of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and its risk factors among patients with type 2 diabetes in Basrah, Iraq.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants in this cross-sectional study were patients who had type 2 diabetes for at least 1 year, presenting at the Al-Faiha Diabetes Endocrine and Metabolism Center in Basrah (Southern Iraq) over the period from January to December 2008.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The series included 1079 patients (58.8% men), of whom 25.0% were smokers. The prevalence of symptomatic cardiovascular disease and hypertension was 16.0%, and 44.3% respectively. Those who were overweight or obese constituted 70.5%. Insulin was used in only 26.9% despite 56.1% having had diabetes for 6 years and more. The mean glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) was 9.46% ± 2.0% and only 5.5% achieved the target of HbA1c of < 7%. We had 68.7% of patients with total cholesterol of ≥ 200 mg/dL, 21.5% with high density lipoprotein cholesterol of < 40 mg/dL, 84.1% with low density lipoprotein cholesterol of ≥ 100 mg/dL and 71.6% with triglyceride of ≥ 150 mg/dL.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Among adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus, there was increased frequency of cardiovascular disease and its modifiable risk factors. This finding necessitated urgent work to modify these risk factors in a population based setting.
authors.affiliation: Abbas Ali Mansour, Division of Endocrine and Metabolism, Basrah College of Medicine, Basrah 61013, Iraq.
authors.forename: Abbas Ali
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Mansour
authors.forename: Narjis Ah
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Ajeel
keywords: Cardiovascular disease; Cardiovascular risk factors; Diabetes mellitus; Type 2 diabetes mellitus