Effect of atorvastatin on regional arterial stiffness in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
OBJECTIVE
A statin, a potent lipid-lowering drug, improves pain-free walking distance in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) without increasing the ankle-brachial pressure index (ABI). Arterial stiffness affects the blood flow of peripheral arteries. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of cholesterol-lowering with atorvastatin on regional arterial stiffness in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.


METHODS
The subjects were 22 type 2 diabetic patients with hypercholesterolemia, who received atorvastatin at a daily dose of 10 mg for 6 months. Before and after the treatment with atorvastatin, we measured pulse wave velocity (PWV) in the heart-brachial, heart-carotid, heart-femoral and femoral-ankle segments.


RESULTS
Following treatment with atorvastatin, femoral-ankle PWV showed a significant reduction. The PWV of other arterial segments tended to decrease, although the changes were not statistically significant. We found no significant changes in blood pressure, heart rate, ABI, or plasma concentrations of glucose, L-arginine and asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), an endogenous inhibitor of endothelial function.


CONCLUSIONS
Atorvastatin treatment was associated with an improvement in the stiffness of leg arteries in type 2 diabetes mellitus. This may partly explain the statin-mediated improvement of walking performance in those with PAD.
Shinohara
Kayo
K
Department of Metabolism, Endocrinology and Molecular Medicine, Osaka City University Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan.
Shoji
Tetsuo
T
Kimoto
Eiji
E
Yokoyama
Hisayo
H
Fujiwara
Shigehiko
S
Hatsuda
Sawako
S
Maeno
Takaaki
T
Shoji
Takuhito
T
Fukumoto
Shinya
S
Emoto
Masanori
M
Koyama
Hidenori
H
Nishizawa
Yoshiki
Y
D000368:Aged; D001158:Arteries / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D000069059:Atorvastatin; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity / Q000187:drug effects*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects*; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006538:Heptanoic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007866:Leg / Q000098:blood supply*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011758:Pyrroles / Q000494:pharmacology*
D006538:Heptanoic Acids; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; D011758:Pyrroles; D000069059:Atorvastatin