Aims/hypothesis: To investigate whether alterations in high-energy phosphates occur in the myocardium of persons with diabetes mellitus type I. Microvascular abnormalities and dysfunction via thickening of the basement membrane are known to occur in diabetic patients. Myocardial high-energy phosphates have been shown to be reduced by ischemia, and alterations of the cardiac metabolism are the primary consequence of myocardial ischemia.
Methods: The present study involved 34 male patients (mean age 35.5 +/- 10.1) with diabetes mellitus type I and 35 healthy male volunteers (mean age 36 +/- 8.6) as age-matched controls. Phosphorus-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging of the heart was performed in all subjects using a 1.5-T whole-body magnetic resonance scanner. The ratios of phosphocreatine (PCr) to beta-adenosinetriphosphate (beta-ATP) were calculated. Moreover, echocardiographic evaluation and stress tests were performed in all individuals.
Results: The myocardium of patients with diabetes mellitus type I showed significantly decreased ratios of PCr to beta-ATP compared with healthy controls in the left ventricle (1.90 +/- 0.4 vs. 2.15 +/- 0.3, p < 0.05). We found a moderate negative correlation between the ratio of PCr to beta-ATP in the left ventricle and both, the diastolic left ventricular function (E/A; r = -0.41) and the glycohemoglobin A1c (GHbA1c; r = -0.42).
Conclusion: This study demonstrates for the first time a decreased ratio of PCr to beta-ATP in the myocardium of persons with diabetes mellitus type I without a known history of coronary heart disease.