Volume 109, Issue 3 pp. 289-297
ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Relationship between pancreatic iron overload, glucose metabolism and cardiac complications in sickle cell disease: An Italian multicentre study

Laura Pistoia

Laura Pistoia

Department of Radiology, Fondazione G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Pisa, Italy

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Antonella Meloni

Antonella Meloni

Department of Radiology, Fondazione G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Pisa, Italy

U.O.C. Bioingegneria, Fondazione G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Pisa, Italy

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Massimo Allò

Massimo Allò

Ematologia Microcitemia, Ospedale San Giovanni di Dio – ASP Crotone, Crotone, Italy

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Anna Spasiano

Anna Spasiano

U.O.S.D. Malattie Rare del Globulo Rosso, Azienda Ospedaliera di Rilievo Nazionale “A. Cardarelli”, Naples, Italy

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Giuseppe Messina

Giuseppe Messina

Centro Microcitemie, Grande Ospedale Metropolitano "Bianchi-Melacrino-Morelli", Reggio Calabria, Italy

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Francesco Sorrentino

Francesco Sorrentino

U.O.S. Day Hospital Talassemici, Ospedale "Sant'Eugenio"- ASL Roma2, Rome, Italy

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Maria Rita Gamberini

Maria Rita Gamberini

U. O. di Day Hospital della Talassemia e delle Emoglobinopatie. Dipartimento della Riproduzione e dell'Accrescimento, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria “S. Anna”, Ferrara, Italy

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Angela Ermini

Angela Ermini

S.O.S. Immunoematologia e Medicina Trasfusionale Ospedale S. Maria Annunziata, Florence, Italy

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Stefania Renne

Stefania Renne

Struttura Complessa di Cardioradiologia-UTIC, Presidio Ospedaliero “Giovanni Paolo II”, Lamezia Terme, Italy

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Priscilla Fina

Priscilla Fina

Unità Operativa Complessa Diagnostica per Immagini, Ospedale "Sandro Pertini", Rome, Italy

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Giuseppe Peritore

Giuseppe Peritore

Unità Operativa Complessa di Radiologia, "ARNAS" Civico, Di Cristina Benfratelli, Palermo, Italy

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Vincenzo Positano

Vincenzo Positano

Department of Radiology, Fondazione G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Pisa, Italy

U.O.C. Bioingegneria, Fondazione G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Pisa, Italy

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Alessia Pepe

Alessia Pepe

Department of Medicine, Institute of Radiology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy

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Filippo Cademartiri

Corresponding Author

Filippo Cademartiri

Department of Radiology, Fondazione G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Pisa, Italy

Correspondence

Filippo Cademartiri, Department of Radiology, Fondazione G. Monasterio CNR-Regione Toscana, Via Moruzzi, 1 - 56124 Pisa, Italy.

Email: [email protected]

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First published: 11 June 2022
Citations: 1

Funding information: E-MIOT project receives ‘no-profit financial support’ from industrial sponsorships (Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A., Bayer S.p.A.). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, or the decision to publish or in preparation of the manuscript.

Abstract

Objectives

Evidence about the cross-talk between iron, glucose metabolism, and cardiac disease is increasing. We aimed to explore the link of pancreatic iron by Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) with glucose metabolism and cardiac complications (CC) in sickle cell disease (SCD) patients.

Methods

We considered 70 SCD patients consecutively enrolled in the Extension-Myocardial Iron Overload in Thalassemia Network. Iron overload was quantified by R2* technique and biventricular function by cine images. Macroscopic myocardial fibrosis was evaluated by late gadolinium enhancement technique. Glucose metabolism was assessed by the oral glucose tolerance test.

Results

Patients with an altered glucose metabolism showed a significantly higher pancreas R2* than patients with normal glucose metabolism. Pancreatic siderosis emerged as a risk factor for the development of metabolic alterations (OddsRatio 8.25, 95%confidence intervals 1.51–45.1; p = .015). Global pancreas R2* values were directly correlated with mean serum ferritin levels and liver iron concentration. Global pancreas R2* was not significantly associated with global heart R2* and macroscopic myocardial fibrosis. Patients with history of CC showed a significantly higher global pancreas R2* than patients with no CC.

Conclusions

Our findings support the evaluation of pancreatic R2* by MRI in SCD patients to prevent the development of metabolic and cardiac disorders.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

No potential conflicts of interest relevant to this article were reported.

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

The data that support the findings of this study are available from https://emiot.ftgm.it/, but restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were used under license for the current study and therefore are not publicly available. Data are, however, available from the authors upon reasonable request and with permission of F.C.

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