SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Echocardiography was performed in 28 patients with type 2 DM and 32 age-matched healthy controls, ranging from 31-69 years of age, with normal left ventricular (LV) systolic function and ECG at rest. Subjects with diabetic complications, including microalbuminuria, nephropathy (Cr>1.3 mg/dL), severe obesity (BMI≥30 kg/m2), LV hypertrophy (LV septal thickness and/or posterior wall thickness 12 mm on M-mode) and hypertension, were excluded. The serum concentrations of PIP and Transforming growth factor TGF-beta1 were measured by enzyme immunoassay methods.

RESULTS: The type 2 DM group had lower mitral (Type 2 DM vs. Control: 0.88±0.28 vs. 1.17±0.34, p<0.01) and tricuspid E/A ratios (1.15±0.25 vs. 1.30±0.25, p=0.01) than the control group. The level of serum PIP was higher (p<0.05) in patients with type 2 DM than in the control group (131.1±45.6 vs. 109.3±32.5). The difference in the duration between transmitral forward (A) and pulmonary venous retrograde (Ar) waves (A-Ar) was considered an estimate of a passive diastolic function. A-Ar was inversely related with the serum PIP level in type 2 diabetes (r=-0.43, p=0.03).

CONCLUSION: These results show a relationship between the LV diastolic function and the serum concentration of PIP in early type 2 DM. These findings suggest that the determination of the serum level of PIP is a useful method for the screening and early diagnosis of myocardial fibrosis associated with DM.