Endocrine Abstracts

Aim: We aimed to investigate the possible relationship between HDL cholesterol subclasses and carotid intima media thickness (CIMT) in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM).

Material and methods: Sixty-two (female/male: 33/29, mean age: 33.3±8.5 years) patients with type 1 DM at least 5 years and 20 (female/male: 10/10, mean age: 30.4±5.6 years) healthy controls were included in the study. After physical examination and anthropometric measurements of all volunteers were performed, HDL2 and HDL3 cholesterol levels were studied from the serum samples which were taken following an 8–10 hour fasting period. CIMT measurements were performed to evaluate the existence of subclinical atherosclerosis by an experienced radiologist.

Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, gender distribution, blood pressure control, anthropometric data, serum total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL cholesterol, ALT and creatinine levels. The mean HbA1c level was 8.1±1.1% in patients with type 1 DM. The mean serum HDL2 cholesterol level was 17.3±10.7 mg/dl in the patient group and 18.3±7.2 mg/dl in the control group. The mean serum HDL3 cholesterol level was 27.5±11.8 mg/dl in the patient group and 28.8±8.6 mg/dl in the control group. No statistically significant difference was found between the groups in terms of serum HDL2 and HDL3 cholesterol levels (P=0.22 and P=0.4, respectively). The CIMT measurements were not different between the patient and the control groups (0.5±0.2 mm vs 0.4±0.1 mm; respectively) (P=0.23). When both groups were evaluated together, there was no statistically significant correlation between serum HDL2 cholesterol levels and CIMT, but there was a negative correlation between serum HDL2 cholesterol levels and body mass index and waist circumferences (r=−0.352; P=0.001 and r=−0.236; P=0.033, respectively). There was no correlation between serum HDL3 cholesterol levels and any other study parameter including the measurement of CIMT. While serum HDL3 cholesterol levels in female patients with type 1 DM were higher than the male patients, serum HDL2 cholesterol levels were higher in females compared with the males in the control group (P=0.019 and P=0.026).

Conclusions: In our study, there was no relationship between serum HDL2 and HDL3 cholesterol levels and CIMT measurements in patients with type 1 DM. There is a need for additional prospective studies to demonstrate possible antiatherosclerotic effects of HDL cholesterol subclasses.