Diabetes mellitus

The world presently has nearly 150 million diabetes of which one fifth that is approximately 33 million are in India. This number is predicted todouble by 2025. In fact India has been dubbed as a diabetes capital of the world at the recent 2003 International diabetes federation (IDF) conference in Paris.

Diabetes mellitus has emerged a major public Health problem in our country and has assumed epidemic proportions.Prevalence of diabetes has increased form 2.1 % in 1972 to almost 20% in 2003. The vast majority of these are type 2 patients. Most of the diabetes develop micro and macrovascular complications of it, manifesting as cardiovascular disease cerebro-vascular disease, renal disease, peripheral vascular disease etc.Cardiovascular disease is presently the leading cause of death among person with diabetes.Dyslipidemia is one of the major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and is also very common in both individuals with type I and type II. Dyslipidemia is a state in which circulating levels of lipids or lipoprotein fractions are abnormal because of genetic and/or environmental conditions that alter the production, catabolism or clearance of plasma lipoproteins. An understanding of lipoprotein metabolism is of particular importance because of association of lipoproteins with coronary heart disease, one of the leading cause of mortality in today's world (30% of total deaths).

Abnormalities in lipoproteins are very common in both

individuals with type II and those with type I. Although lipoprotein alterations appear to be intrinsic part of these disorders such alterations also are induced by diabetes - associated complications such as obesity and renal disease.