Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of older patients with diabetes mellitus according to glycated hemoglobin quartiles at the index date
| Categories | All | Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4 | P‐value § | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HbA1c range (%) | – | <6.3 | 6.3 to <6.6 | 6.6 to <7.2 | ≥7.2 | ||
| No. patients | n | 3,946 | 973 | 785 | 1,177 | 1,011 | |
| Follow‐up period (years) | Mean ± SD | 2.51 ± 1.88 | 2.60 ± 1.91 | 2.54 ± 1.90 | 2.55 ± 1.89 | 2.33 ± 1.82 | 0.007 |
| Age (years) | Mean ± SD | 72.2 ± 5.9 | 72.4 ± 5.9 | 71.9 ± 5.8 | 72.2 ± 6.0 | 72.2 ± 5.9 | 0.311 |
| Sex (male) | n (%) | 2098 (53.2) | 525 (54.0) | 396 (50.4) | 623 (52.9) | 554 (54.8) | 0.298 |
| HbA1c † (%) | Mean ± SD | 8.17 ± 2.19 | 7.79 ± 2.32 | 7.68 ± 1.81 | 7.98 ± 1.91 | 9.13 ± 2.35 | <0.001 |
| HbA1c at the index date (%) | Mean ± SD | 6.82 ± 0.94 | 5.91 ± 0.28 | 6.40 ± 0.08 | 6.82 ± 0.17 | 8.02 ± 0.98 | <0.001 |
| Antihypertensive agents | n (%) | 2120 (53.7) | 557 (57.2) | 425 (54.1) | 598 (50.8) | 540 (53.4) | 0.030 |
| Antihyperlipidemic agents | n (%) | 1565 (39.7) | 394 (40.5) | 308 (39.2) | 444 (37.7) | 419 (41.4) | 0.317 |
| Antithrombotic agents/coronary vasodilators | n (%) | 502 (12.7) | 150 (15.4) | 87 (11.1) | 131 (11.1) | 134 (13.3) | 0.011 |
| Insulin/sulfonylureas/glinides ‡ | n (%) | 1767 (44.8) | 422 (43.4) | 259 (33.0) | 451 (38.3) | 635 (62.8) | <0.001 |
The glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) quartiles were 6.3, 6.6 and 7.2%.
†
HbA1c on initial visit for diabetes mellitus.
‡
Antihyperglycemic agents with a high risk of hypoglycemia.
§
One‐way anova and χ2‐tests were used for comparison of mean values of continuous data (follow‐up period, age, HbA1c and HbA1c at the index date) and categorical variables (sex, antihypertensive agents, antihyperlipidemic agents, antithrombotic agents/coronary vasodilators and insulin/sulfonylureas/glinides prescriptions), respectively. SD, standard deviation.