The TyG index may predict the development of cardiovascular events

BackgroundCardiovascular disease (CVD) is the worldwide leading cause of morbidity and mortality. An early risk detection of apparently healthy people before CVD onset has clinical relevance in the prevention of cardiovascular events. We evaluated the association between the product of fasting plasma glucose and triglycerides (TyG index) and CVD. Material and methodsA total of 5014 patients of the Vascular Metabolic CUN cohort (VMCUN cohort) were followed up during a median period of 10years. We used a Cox proportional-hazard ratio with repeated measures to estimate the risk of incidence of CVD across quintiles of the TyG index, calculated as ln[fasting triglycerides (mg/dL)xfasting plasma glucose (mg(dL)/2], and plotted a receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve to compare a prediction model fitted on the variables used in the Framingham risk score, a new model containing the Framingham variables with the TyG index, and the risk of coronary heart disease. ResultsA higher level of TyG index was significantly associated with an increased risk of developing CVD independent of confounding factors with a value of 232 (95% CI: 165-326) for those in the highest quintile and 152 (95% CI: 107-216) for those in the fourth quintile. The areas under the curve (AUC) of the ROC plots were 0708 (068-073) for the Framingham model and 0719 (070-074) for the Framingham+TyG index model (P=0014). ConclusionsThe TyG index, a simple measure reflecting insulin resistance, might be useful to early identify individuals at a high risk of developing a cardiovascular event.