Background: Lipid abnormalities contribute significantly to the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in diabetic and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. Accumulating evidence supports a proatherogenic role for remnant lipoproteins. Thus, the aim of the present study was to compare remnant-like particle-cholesterol (RLP-C) in type 2 diabetic and ESRD patients with age- and gender-matched controls.
Methods: Using an immunoaffinity assay, we measured RLP-C concentrations in 48 type 2 diabetic patients with (n = 24) and without (n = 24) macrovascular complications, and 24 age- and gender-matched controls, as well as in 38 ESRD patients on hemodialysis (n = 19) and peritoneal dialysis (n = 19), and 19 age- and gender-matched controls.
Results: RLP-C correlated significantly with plasma triglycerides (TGs; r = 0.8). When compared with controls, RLP-C concentrations were significantly higher in type 2 diabetic patients with and without macrovascular complications (median, 0.22 and 0.17 mmol/L vs 0.14 mmol/L; P <0.0002 and <0.01, respectively); diabetic patients with macrovascular complications also had significantly higher RLP-C than diabetic patients without macrovascular complications (P <0.05). However, when RLP-C/TG ratios were computed, only diabetic patients with macrovascular complications showed significantly higher RLP-C/TG ratios compared with controls (P <0.05). Regarding ESRD, RLP-C concentrations were significantly increased in patients on both hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis compared with controls (median, 0.23 and 0.21 mmol/L vs 0.13 mmol/L; P <0.0001). Whereas RLP-C was increased in ESRD patients on hemodialysis with TGs <2.26 mmol/L compared with controls, RLP-C/TG ratios were not significantly increased in these patients.
Conclusions: Type 2 diabetic patients with macrovascular disease demonstrated increased RLP-C and RLP-C/TG ratios, whereas ESRD patients showed only increased RLP-C concentrations.