Cardiac Autonomic Function Correlates with Arterial Stiffness in the Early Stage of Type 1 Diabetes

Abstract EN

Arterial stiffness is increased in type 1 diabetes (T1D), before any clinical complications of the disease are evident.

The aim of the present paper was to investigate the association between cardiac autonomic function and arterial stiffness in a cohort of young T1D patients, without history of hypertension and any evidence of macrovascular and/or renal disease.

Large artery stiffness was assessed by measurement of carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV).

Cardiac autonomic function was assessed by the cardiovascular tests proposed by Ewing and Clarke.

Patients with a high cardiac autonomic neuropathy score (≥4) had significantly higher PWV than those with a low score (0-1).

A negative, heart rate-independent, correlation between PWV and heart rate variation during respiration was observed (r=−0.533, P<0.001).

In multivariable analysis, E/I index was the strongest correlate of PWV (β-coefficient = −0.326, P=0.002).

Cardiac parasympathetic function is a strong predictor of large arterial stiffness, in young T1D patients free of macrovascular and renal complications.