Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Diabetes mellitus is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. In the USA, a survey of deaths in 1986 suggested that 60−75% of people with diabetes die from cardiovascular causes. METHODS AND OUTCOMES: We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of promoting smoking cessation; controlling blood pressure; treating dyslipidaemia; blood glucose control; treating multiple risk factors; revascularisation procedures; and antiplatelet drugs in people with diabetes? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library and other important databases up to November 2004 (BMJ Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). RESULTS: We found 63 systematic reviews, RCTs, or observational studies that met our inclusion criteria. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions. CONCLUSIONS: In this systematic review we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: antihypertensive drugs, antihypertensive treatment, aspirin, clopidogrel, coronary artery bypass graft, diet, fibrates, glycaemic control (intensive versus conventional control), heparin (with or without glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors, or clopidogrel), lower target blood pressures, metformin, multiple risk factor treatment (intensive), percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (plus stent), smoking cessation, statins (aggressive or moderate lipid lowering, low or standard dose), stent (plus glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors), thrombolysis.