Treatment of lipids and type 2 diabetes.

The development of type 2 diabetes is increasing in epidemic proportions. There is a significant risk for cardiovascular disease, which is the most prevalent and detrimental complication for the diabetic population. Serum lipid abnormalities are common in patients with diabetes, and due to this increased vascular risk, it is recommended to aggressively treat the hyperlipidemia. Therefore, intensive lipid-lowering therapy should be used for primary and secondary prevention against macrovascular complications for patients with type 2 diabetes. In this article some of the key studies justifying the need for lipid reduction in patients with type 2 diabetes are reviewed and practical guidelines for management of the dyslipidemia are suggested.