Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Dyslipidemia is a key clinical abnormality among diabetes mellitus (DM) patients, which heightens their risk of cardiovascular events. Data on the serum lipid profile of type 2 DM (T2DM) patients in Saudi Arabia are scarce. This study therefore aimed to establish dyslipidemia prevalence in a sample of adult T2DM patients in Saudi Arabia and to investigate its associated factors. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was applied to 400 adult T2DM outpatients in attendance at a diabetic center clinic in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia between September 2017 and December 2018 using convenience sampling. Structured questionnaires gathered data relating to the potential risk factors for dyslipidemia. Data on fasting blood glucose (FBG), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels were collected from all participants along with their height and weight measurements. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was then used to evaluate the associated risk factors for dyslipidemia. RESULTS: Of the sampled outpatients, 47.8% had high TC levels, 39.0% had high LDL-C, 35.5% had low HDL-C, 42.8% had high TG levels, and 66.5% had a minimum of one abnormal lipid level (dyslipidemia). The risk factors associated with dyslipidemia were an age of >40 years (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.96, 95% CI 1.19-3.22), irregular exercise (AOR = 2.90, 95% CI 1.21-6.92), a family history of T2DM (AOR = 3.72, 95% CI 2.22-6.23), having had T2DM for >7 years (AOR = 2.42, 95% CI 1.46-3.99), and overweight (AOR = 2.61, 95% CI 1.49-4.58) or obesity (AOR = 2.50, 95% CI 1.24-5.05). CONCLUSION: Dyslipidemia prevalence was found to be high among T2DM patients. Therefore, a compressive mechanism is needed which can screen, treat, and inform them about dyslipidemia and its risk factors, especially modifiable ones such as obesity and exercise.