INCREASED ARTERIAL STIFFNESS IN WOMEN, BUT NOT IN MEN, WITH IDDM

For unknown reasons, there is a greater increase in the risk for cardi ovascular complications in diabetic women than in diabetic men. Our ai m was to study gender-related differences in the mechanical properties of the great arteries in patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mel litus (IDDM) but free from known cardiovascular and cerebrovascular co mplications. We measured arterial stiffness (beta, inversely related t o arterial compliance) in the abdominal aorta and the common carotid a rtery non-invasively using echo-tracking sonography in 30 women (mean age 34 years, range 20-61) and 26 men (mean age 38 years, range 22-56) with IDDM. The results were compared with those of healthy individual s of corresponding age and gender. The results showed a marked gender- difference in changes of arterial stiffness, Arterial stiffness was in creased in both the abdominal aorta and the common carotid artery in d iabetic women compared to control women (p = 0.0001 and p = 0.0076, re spectively). In contrast, there was no significant difference in stiff ness of the abdominal aorta or the common carotid artery between the d iabetic men and the control men (p = 0.69 and p = 0.39, respectively). In conclusion, this study has shown that stiffness of the aorta and t he common carotid artery is increased in diabetic women but not in dia betic men, Increased arterial stiffness in diabetic women may be a pat hogenic factor which could help to explain the gender-related differen ces in the risk for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular complications i n diabetic subjects.