Postprandial impairment of resistance vessel function in insulin treated patients with diabetes mellitus type‐2

Reduced postischaemic reactive hyperaemia, is considered a marker of impaired resistance vessel function. Acute postprandial hyperlipidaemia has been shown to induce vascular dysfunction. In the present study, the impact of postprandial hyperglycaemia on resistance vessel reactivity was investigated in insulin treated type-2 diabetic patients. The study was performed in 16 insulin treated type-2 diabetics (eight male/eight female, age 47 +/- 3 years, HbA1c 7.2 +/- 0.2) and 16 controls. Reactive hyperaemia was measured in the forearm by venous occlusion plethysmography after 5 min of ischaemia in the fasting state and 90 min after a test meal. In diabetics, blood glucose increased from 8.7 +/- 1.1 to 15.3 +/- 1.0 mmol l-1 (P<0.001) postprandially. This resulted in (i) a significant increase of resting blood flow (3.4 +/- 0.3 to 4.8 +/- 0.4 ml min-1 100 ml-1, P<0.01) and (ii) in a reduced peak reactive hyperaemia (52.3 +/- 7.4 to 36.8 +/- 4.3 ml min-1 100 ml-1, P<0.005). In controls, a similar effect of the meal on resting flow was observed but reactive hyperaemia was unaltered. In the absence of a test meal, basal flow as well as peak reactive hyperaemia remained unchanged in diabetic as well as in non-diabetic subjects. Our data provide evidence that in the postprandial state resistance vessel reactivity becomes reduced in insulin treated type-2 diabetic patients.