Elevated 1‐h plasma glucose following 75‐g oral glucose load is a predictor of arterial stiffness in subjects with normal glucose tolerance

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate arterial stiffness in subjects with normal glucose tolerance. BMI, systolic blood pressure, fasting plasma glucose, lipid variables, ankle-brachial pressure index and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity were measured in 2059 subjects from Takasaki city, located approximately 100 km north of Tokyo in Japan. Following a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test, only subjects with normal glucose tolerance were selected. One-hour post-challenge plasma glucose levels were correlated with brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity values (r = 0.340, P < 0.0001). When subjects with normal glucose tolerance were divided into three groups-group 1 (1-h plasma glucose < 8.56 mmol/l, n = 1595), group 2 (1-h plasma glucose ≥ 8.56 and < 10.17 mmol/l, n = 334) and group 3 (1-h plasma glucose ≥ 10.17 mmol/l, n = 130)-the brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity of group 3 (1473 ± 322 cm/s) was significantly higher than that of group 2 (1355 ± 252 cm/s) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity of group 2 was also significantly higher than that of group 1 (1275 ± 212 cm/s). We have identified that, in normal glucose tolerance, arterial stiffness is advanced in subjects with higher 1-h post-challenge plasma glucose in spite of the normal range for BMI, systolic blood pressure, fasting plasma glucose and lipid variables. Higher 1-h plasma glucose level is a risk factor for arterial stiffness in normal glucose tolerance.