Hemorheological alterations in patients with diabetic retinopathy

Hemorheological factors play an important role in the pathogenesis of diffe rent cardiovascular diseases. Diabetes mellitus resulting in micro- and mac roangiopathies is one of the major risk factors for cardiovascular diseases . In our present study the hemorheological parameters (hematocrit, plasma fib rinogen level, plasma and whole blood viscosity, red blood cell aggregation ) of 30 diabetic patients (mean age: 57 +/- 12 years) and 30 healthy volunt eers (mean age: 31 +/- 10 years) were examined. The fundus appearance of pa tients showed diabetic retinopathy; non-proliferative stage in 22 cases, pr eproliferative or proliferative stage in 8 cases. The measured hemorheologi cal parameters of the examined patients were in the pathological range and were significantly higher than those of healthy volunteers (hematocrit: p < 0.01; plasma fibrinogen: p < 0.001; plasma viscosity: p < 0.01; whole bloo d viscosity: p < 0.001; red blood cell aggregation: p < 0.01). In our study there was not significant difference in the hemorheologic variables of pat ients with different stages of retinopathy. Our results propose the importance of hemorheologic factors in the developm ent of diabetic microangiopathy.