The cross-sectional association of cognition with diabetic peripheral and autonomic neuropathy-The GRADE study.

Abstract Background Studies examining whether measures of cognition are related to the presence of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) and/or cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy (CAN) are lacking, as are data regarding factors potentially explaining such associations. Methods Participants were from the Glycemia Reduction Approaches in Diabetes Study (GRADE) that examined 5047 middle-aged people with type 2 diabetes of Results DPN was significantly inversely related to measures of immediate recall and processing speed. The percent of cognitive variation explained by DPN was small. Tests of CAN had an inconsistent or absent association with measures of cognition. Higher waist circumference and urine albumin creatinine (UACR) levels were the strongest correlates in the relationship between DPN and cognitive impairment. Conclusion DPN, but not CAN, is cross-sectionally associated with lower performance in measures of cognition in people with type 2 diabetes of Clinicaltrials.gov : NCT01794143