title: Effects of alloxan-induced diabetes on hemorheology in rabbits.
abstract: Plasma viscosity (PV), apparent whole blood viscosity (WBV), relative blood viscosity (RV) and erythrocyte deformability (filterability) (EDF) were determined in 13 New Zealand White (NZW) rabbits with alloxan induced-diabetes (AID) and 8 normal NZW rabbits, matched for age, sex and weight. AID rabbits were divided into two groups depending on the duration of hyperglycemia (long-term, greater than 6.0 months (n = 7), and short-term, less than or equal to 3.0 months of hyperglycemia, n = 6). Comparing long-term AID rabbits to normal animals, we found significant increases in WBV (P less than 0.001, 0.005 for high and low rates of shear, respectively), and a marked reduction in EDF (P less than 0.001). There was no significant difference in PV between long-term AID and normal rabbits. Conversely, PV was significantly increased in rabbits with short-term diabetes (P less than 0.01) while there was a concurrent significant increase in WBV measured at high and low rates of shear (P less than 0.001, 0.001, respectively). No difference was detected in EDF between normal and short-term AID rabbits. Furthermore, in long-term AID rabbits there was a strongly positive correlation between RV and reduced erythrocyte deformability (r = 0.94, P = 0.006) while WBV strongly correlated with PV (r = 0.92, P = 0.004) in the short-term AID subgroup. We conclude from these data: (1) elevated blood viscosity in long term AID rabbits is associated with reduced erythrocyte filterability; and (2) elevated WBV in short-term AID rabbits is associated with increased PV.
authors.affiliation: State University of New York Health Science Center, Brooklyn.
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Z H
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Berweck
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: de Alvaro
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Friedman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001809:Blood Viscosity / Q000502:physiology*; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000097:blood*; D004907:Erythrocyte Deformability / Q000502:physiology*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D011817:Rabbits; D012212:Rheology; D013997:Time Factors