A new study from the University of Copenhagen has found that adults with type 2 diabetes who do not take their medicine consistently have a 27 percent higher risk of serious cardiovascular events.
The study followed the medicine use of nearly 80,000 Danes over a ten-year period. DR reported the findings on the morning of August 7, 2026, based on a press release from the university. The results concern adults with type 2 diabetes.
Researchers divided participants into three groups according to how closely they followed their prescribed treatment, known in medical terms as adherence. According to the press release, distributed through EurekAlert, 41 percent showed high adherence. Another 33 percent had moderate adherence.
The remaining 26 percent dropped off quickly and had persistently low adherence over the follow-up period. That group had a 27 percent higher risk of serious cardiovascular events than patients who took their medicine consistently. The moderate adherence group had a 7 percent higher risk.
Researchers point to support after diagnosis
The study was led by Associate Professor Jordi Merino at the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research at the University of Copenhagen. As stated in the press release, Merino said the findings show that continued use of the medicine in the years after diagnosis has real significance for heart health.
Merino also said the results underline the need to offer individual support early after diagnosis. According to him, it is not enough to assume that the prescription alone will be sufficient. The university’s press release presents the study as an observational analysis of medicine use over time.
The figures reported by DR match those in the university’s own release, which adds the breakdown of the three adherence groups and the lead researcher’s explanation of the findings. The release describes the size of the study population as close to 80,000 people. It does not report separate figures for men and women.
Diabetes treatment in Denmark is handled through the public health system, and prescription medicine is dispensed by pharmacies. The study looked at whether patients actually collected and used their medicine over the ten years covered, rather than only whether it had been prescribed. Readers unfamiliar with the system can find an overview of Danish healthcare.
Neither DR nor the University of Copenhagen linked the publication to a policy change, a political decision, or a deadline. The reporting followed the release of the study on August 7, 2026. No other Danish outlets had covered the study at the time of DR’s report.
