Health burden in (pre)diabetes and the role of cardiovascular function: extensive phenotyping in a population-based approach

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disease characterized by increased blood glucose levels that lead to so-called classic complications such as cardiovascular disease. However, the total health burden in type 2 diabetes and its precursor stage, prediabetes, may be even greater due to other so-called comorbidities: diseases that occur more often with diabetes, but are not included in classic complications. An example is depression. This dissertation focuses on quantifying the total health burden and provides more insight into the underlying cardiovascular mechanisms. This was investigated in an extensively characterized group of individuals with and without (pre)diabetes. This dissertation emphasizes the importance of health professionals' awareness of comorbidities as part of the health burden in individuals with (pre)diabetes. Future prospective studies are necessary to determine whether tackling hyperglycaemia can reduce the health burden and to further investigate the exact cardiovascular mechanisms.