Type 2 diabetes is associated with a 2 - 4-fold increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), and over half the excess mortality in subjects with type 2 diabetes is due to this complication. The development of macrovascular disease in type 2 diabetes is partly related to chronic hyperglycaemia, but also to other associated atherogenic factors, including dyslipidaemia, oxidative stress, endothelial damage, hypercoaguability and activation of inflammatory pathways.