Trajectories of anxiety symptoms and associations with incident cardiovascular disease in adults with type 2 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: Trajectories of anxiety symptoms in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and their associations with diabetes health outcomes have not been investigated. This study examined latent longitudinal trajectories of anxiety symptoms in adults with T2D and their associations with incident cardiovascular disease (CVD).

METHODS: Data were from the Evaluation of Diabetes Treatment Study, a community-based cohort study of adults aged 40-76years with T2D. Anxiety and CVD were assessed by self-report at baseline and at four annual follow-up assessments. N=832 participants without cardiovascular disease at baseline and 12-month follow-up were included in the present study. Group-based trajectories of anxiety at baseline, 12-month follow-up, and 24-month follow-up were modelled using latent class growth modeling. Associations between anxiety trajectories and CVD reported at 24-, 36-, or 48-month follow-ups were examined with logistic regression analysis adjusted for sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics.

RESULTS: Four distinct anxiety trajectories were identified, reflecting chronically low (39.4%), chronically moderate-low (47.4%), chronically moderate-high (11.1%), and chronically high (2.2%) anxiety. The likelihood of CVD was greater for the chronically moderate-low (OR=2.23, 95% CI=1.36-3.66), chronically moderate-high (OR=3.05, 95% CI=1.54-6.02), and chronically high (OR=3.61, 95% CI=1.09-12.00) anxiety trajectory groups compared to the chronically low anxiety group.

CONCLUSION: The identified latent trajectories reflected three groups with chronic courses of anxiety symptoms at different levels of severity and one group with chronically low levels of anxiety. Chronic anxiety, even at subthreshold levels, was associated with an increased risk of CVD among people with T2D.