Abstract
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the most important factors which affects the life and prognosis of diabetics, especially non insulin-dependent diabetics. Abnormalities in glucose and lipid metabolism could accelerate the atherogenesis, and hemorheological changes might also influence the CVD of diabetics. In this study changes in blood and plasma viscosity, blood viscoelasticity, red cell filterability (RCF) and platelet aggregation were observed in diabetics with CVD, and they were compared to those of diabetics without CVD. In this comparison the age and sex, and the severity of microangiopathy were matched between the groups as well as possible. Blood viscosity, especially measured at low shear rates, of diabetics with CVD was significantly increased when compared to those without CVD Plasma viscosity also showed an increasing tendency in diabetics with CVD. Blood viscoelasticity was also increased in diabetics with CVD. But RCF showed no significant difference with and without CVD, although a significant decrease of RCF was observed in diabetics with advanced retinopathy compared with the simple retinopathy group. Platelet aggregation showed no significant difference between the groups. In summary the hemorheological abnormalities might play a pathogenetic role in the CVD of diabetics, because, in our study, some of them showed the abnormalities after the age and the severity of microangiopathy were matched. But the possible relations between the hemorheological abnormalities and the other risk factors of CVD in diabetics should be further studied.