Lower wall shear rate of the common carotid artery in treated type 2 diabetes mellitus with metabolic syndrome

Arterial sites with low wall shear stress (WSS) are more prone to the development of atherosclerotic plaques, as was observed in carotid arteries in subjects with atherosclerosis risk factors. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), hypertension, hyperlipidemia and other components of the metabolic syndrome, are associated with high risk for symptomatic cerebrovascular disease. It was shown by others that untreated type 2 DM is associated with lower WSS in common carotid arteries. However, the cardiovascular risk of type 2 DM could be modified by therapy. The aim of our study was to test the hypothesis that treated type 2 DM subjects with metabolic syndrome still have lower WSS in common carotid arteries than healthy controls. We enrolled 26 compensated DM subjects with metabolic syndrome, treated by metformin, statins and ACEI for more than 6 months, and 22 aged-comparable healthy controls. Wall shear rate (WSR) was used as a measure of WSS. A linear 3-11 MHz probe was used to measure blood velocity and internal diameter in the common carotid arteries. We compared observed values of WSR adjusted for age by ANCOVA. Wall shear rate was significantly lower in DM group than in control subjects: peak (systolic) values of wall shear rate were 410+/-130 s(-1) vs. 487+/-111 s(-1) (p<0.005). DM subjects had significantly lower WSR, because of both thinner lumen and slower blood flow velocities. Lower WSR was accompanied by higher IMT (0.73+/-0.12 mm vs. 0.64+/-0.11 mm, p<0.001). Treated subjects with compensated type 2 DM with metabolic syndrome still have atherogenic hemodynamic profile. These findings might help to understand faster progression of atherosclerosis in diabetic subjects with metabolic syndrome despite up-to-date medication.