Intravascular Ultrasound in the Determination of the Mechanical Properties of Diabetic Arteries

Abstract

Abstract Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in diabetic individuals. Diabetes mellitus is associated with a two- to four-fold increase in risk of coronary heart disease. This risk is independent of other classical risk factors including age, smoking, elevated serum cholesterol levels, and hypertension, and the overall risk of cardiovascular disease increases proportionally with the number of risk factors. Many groups are currently investigating the aetiology of diabetic vascular disease, with particular interesting being paid to the processes involved in the formation of highly cross-linked carbohydrate-protein complexes known as melanoids. These complexes appear to be formed by glycation arising from reactions between glucose and the amino groups on proteins, and their formation within the vessel wall resqlts in a decrease in vascular elasticity. This decrease in elasticity has been implicated in the increased incidence of atherosclerosis in diabetic individuals. Previous testing modalities could not test in the radial direction and required assumptions based on incompressibility in order to determine the radial behavior of the artery.