Volume 32, Issue 12 pp. 1745-1753
Original Investigation

The Relationship between Epicardial Fat Thickness and Endothelial Dysfunction in Type I Diabetes Mellitus

Abdullah Nabi Aslan M.D.

Corresponding Author

Abdullah Nabi Aslan M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Ankara Ataturk Education and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey

Address for correspondence and reprint requests: Abdullah Nabi Aslan, M.D., Department of Cardiology, Ankara Ataturk Education and Research Hospital, Bilkent 06800, Ankara, Turkey. Fax: +90-3122912745;

E-mail: [email protected]

Search for more papers by this author
Telat Keleş M.D.

Telat Keleş M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Hüseyin Ayhan M.D.

Hüseyin Ayhan M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Hacı Ahmet Kasapkara M.D.

Hacı Ahmet Kasapkara M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Murat Akçay M.D.

Murat Akçay M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Tahir Durmaz M.D.

Tahir Durmaz M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Cenk Sarı M.D.

Cenk Sarı M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Ankara Ataturk Education and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Serdal Baştuğ M.D.

Serdal Baştuğ M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Ankara Ataturk Education and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Bekir Çakır M.D.

Bekir Çakır M.D.

Department of Endocrinology, Faculty of Medicine, Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
Engin Bozkurt M.D.

Engin Bozkurt M.D.

Department of Cardiology, Ankara Ataturk Education and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 27 April 2015
Citations: 19

Abstract

Background and Aim

Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) is a new independent marker of coronary artery disease (CAD). The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between epicardial fat thickness (EFT) and endothelial dysfunction (ED) in patients with type I diabetes mellitus (TIDM).

Methods and Results

Seventy-six type I diabetic patients (diabetes duration 11.7 ± 8,1 years, aged 30.6 ± 10 years; female/male: 38/38) and 36 healthy controls were enrolled into the study. Fasting plasma glucose (FPG), lipid panel, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C), high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP), and fibrinogen levels were determined. EFT was measured via two-dimensional (2D) M-mode echocardiography. Endothelial function was assessed as flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) at the brachial artery using high-resolution ultrasound. EFT was significantly higher in patients compared to controls (3.56 ± 0.48 mm vs. 3.03 ± 0.48 mm, P < 0.001). In addition, significant differences were observed between the patient and control groups in terms of FMD (6.70% ± 1.63 vs. 9.99% ± 1.84, respectively, P < 0.001). EFT was shown to be correlated negatively with FMD (r: −0.94, P < 0.001) and positively with hsCRP (r: 0.41, P < 0.001) and fibrinogen (r: 0. 31, P = 0.007). Multiple regression analysis showed EFT to be an independent factor influencing the endothelial function.

Conclusion

There was inverse relationship between EFT and endothelial function in this study. EFT measured easily by transthoracic echocardiography may be a useful parameter in the assessment of patients with TIDM.

The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties.