Chamberlain AM, et al. - In patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) with or without concomitant cardiovascular disease (CVD), experts characterized lipid-lowering therapy (LLT) prescriptions and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) monitoring. Participants were from Olmsted County, MN and had a first-ever diagnosis of DM or CVD (ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack, myocardial infarction, unstable angina pectoris, or revascularization procedure) between 2005 and 2012; they were categorized as DM only, CVD only, or CVD + DM. DM, CVD, and CVD + DM was observed in a total of 4,186, 2,368, and 724 patients, respectively. In subjects with DM, CVD, and CVD + DM, rates of LDL-C measurements were 1.31, 1.66, and 1.88 per person-year and 14%, 32%, and 42% of LDL-C measurements were <70 mg/dL. Within 3 months of diagnosis, 47%, 71%, and 78% of patients with DM, CVD, and CVD + DM, respectively, were given LLT. Less than one-fifth of those with CVD and CVD + DM were given high-intensity statins. Male sex, having CVD or CVD + DM, progressing LDL-C, and LDL-C measured more recently were predictors of high-intensity statin prescriptions. A large proportion of patients at high CVD risk were not sufficiently treated with LLT. Moreover, those with DM had considerably lower rates of LLT prescriptions and less controlled LDL-C vs those with CVD or CVD + DM, despite frequently being acknowledged as risk-equivalent.