Abstract:
Diabetes mellitus and hypertension are common clinical
conditions that often co-exist. This combination has
been called the deadly duet to emphasise the increased
cardiovascular risk when the two conditions co-exist.
Hypertension occurs more commonly in diabetics
than in comparable non-diabetics, as the prevalence
of hypertension in diabetics is about two times higher
than that of hypertension as observed in the general
population. In type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension is
often present as part of a possible common underlying
metabolic abnormality, such as insulin resistance.
However, in type 1 diabetes mellitus, hypertension is
often due to the onset of diabetic nephropathy.