Early initiation of statins after diagnosis of type 2 diabetes associated with a lower risk of dementia
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Early initiation of statins after diagnosis of type 2 diabetes was associated with a lower risk of dementia, according to a study presented at ESC Congress 2026 and published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe.
The burden of dementia is projected to rise with the aging population. With no effective treatments, prevention is an urgent priority. According to the Lancet Commission, nearly half of dementia cases could theoretically be prevented by eliminating 14 risk factors.
"Detecting and treating high levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) from midlife is one such highlighted risk factor," explained presenter Dr. Tummas Ternhamar from Copenhagen University Hospital, Denmark. He noted that this could be particularly important in patients with type 2 diabetes because elevated LDL-C occurs frequently in these individuals, and diabetes is a highlighted risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia.
"We hypothesized that early initiation of LDL-C-lowering statins following type 2 diabetes diagnosis could be associated with a lower risk of dementia," Ternhamar said. "And we tested this in a large nationwide study using analysis methods to emulate a randomized trial and reduce some of the bias associated with observational studies," he noted.
From Danish registers, researchers identified 132,585 statin-naive individuals who developed type 2 diabetes from 2006 through 2019, with follow-up until the end of 2021.
Medical records were searched for diagnoses of all-cause dementia. A clone-censor-weight design was used to analyze dementia incidence in patients with no statin initiation within five years after diagnosis, in those with early statin initiation within one year and in those with late statin initiation between one and five years after diagnosis.
During a median follow-up of 7.1 years, 2.7% of patients developed dementia. Compared with no statin initiation, early statin treatment was associated with a 15% lower relative risk of dementia over 10 years. Late statin initiation was associated with a 10% lower relative risk of dementia over 10 years. The results were similar in women and men.
Ternhamar concluded, "In individuals developing type 2 diabetes, statins were associated with a lower risk of dementia, most pronounced in those with early initiation. Statins seem to be underused in patients with type 2 diabetes, despite their protective effects against cardiovascular disease.
"Our findings suggest another potentially important reason to ensure that patients with type 2 diabetes and high LDL-C receive timely statin treatment."
Commenting on the findings, Professor Isabel Goncalves, member of the ESC Communication Committee, said, "People with type 2 diabetes already have a higher risk of dementia and are advised to lower cholesterol to reduce their risk of heart attack and stroke. This study suggests that starting statins soon after a type 2 diabetes diagnosis may also be linked to a modest reduction in dementia risk, with greater benefit than delaying treatment.
"Because statins are widely available and inexpensive, the findings are potentially important. However, this was an observational study, so it cannot prove that statins prevent dementia. The results should therefore support further research and help inform discussions between patients and clinicians."
Publication details
Timing of statin treatment following diabetes diagnosis on risk of dementia: a nationwide study. The Lancet Regional Health – Europe (2026)
Journal information: The Lancet
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NeurologyEndocrinologyCardiologyCommon illnesses & PreventionHealthy aging Provided by European Society of Cardiology Who's behind this story?
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