A. Clemens et al., Octreotide (somatostatin analog) treatment reduces endothelial cell dysfunction in patients with diabetes mellitus, METABOLISM, 48(10), 1999, pp. 1236-1240
Octreotide is a long-acting somatostatin analog that has been shown to have
various effects in diabetes. This study was performed to evaluate whether
octreotide affects the vascular complications of diabetes mellitus. Albumin
uria and serum thrombomodulin were used as markers of vascular and renal dy
sfunction. We studied the effect of octreotide in 27 patients with insulin-
dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). They received 200 mu g octreotide per d
ay over a period of 6 months. As a marker of endothelial cell damage, we me
asured the serum thrombomodulin level. We also measured urinary albumin exc
retion, hemoglobin Ale (HbA(1C)), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), and
other parameters. IGF-1 decreased from 123 ng/mL before treatment to 114 n
g/mL after 6 months of octreotide treatment (P = .009), while no significan
t change was observed in the unblinded control group (from 103 ng/mL to 102
ng/mL after 6 months of treatment), Urinary albumin excretion in patients
with macroalbuminuria declined from 1,124 mg/L before octreotide treatment
to 556 mg/L after 6 months of treatment (P < .05), whereas no change was ob
served in the control group. There was also a reduction of the plasma throm
bomodulin level from 61.8 ng/mL to 46.1 ng/mL (P < .07) after 6 months of t
reatment. Furthermore, HbA(1c) decreased from 8.75% +/- 1.27% to 8.12% +/-
1.23% (P < .07) after octreotide treatment. Copyright (C) 1999 by W.B. Saun
ders Company.