title: Meriva®, a lecithinized curcumin delivery system, in diabetic microangiopathy and retinopathy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In the present study, the improvement of diabetic microangiopathy and retinopathy was evaluated in 38 diabetic patients treated with a novel curcumin phospholipids delivery form (Meriva®).
  
  
  METHODS
  Diabetes was diagnosed at least 5 years before inclusion and all patients had signs of retinal oedema and of peripheral microangiopathy. Meriva® was administered at the dosage of 2 tablets/day (each tablet containing 500 mg Meriva® corresponding to 100 mg curcumin) for a period of at least 4 weeks in addition to the standard management plan, while a comparable group of subjects (n = 39) followed the standard management plan alone.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All subjects (treatment and controls) completed the follow-up period, there were no dropouts and Meriva® showed an optimal tolerability. At 4 weeks, microcirculatory and clinical evaluations indicated an improvement of microangiopathy. In terms of peripheral microangiopathy, in the Meriva® group, there was a significant improvement in the venoarteriolar response (p<0.05) and a decrease in the score of peripheral oedema (p<0.05), a sign typically associated with the failure of the venoarteriolar response. At the retinal level, high-resolution, duplex scanning, used to measure retinal flow, showed improvements in the Meriva® treated patients. The evaluation of retinal oedema (Steigerwalt's scale) showed an improvement associated with improved visual acuity (Snellen scale). There were no clinical or microcirculatory effects in controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These preliminary observations, indicate the value of curcumin, when administered in a bioavailable form as with Meriva®, in the management of diabetic microangiopathy and retinopathy.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Oftalmiche, Uniroma1, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Steigerwalt
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nebbioso
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Appendino
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Belcaro
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ciammaichella
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Cornelli
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Luzzi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Togni
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dugall
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Cesarone
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ippolito
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Errichi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ledda
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hosoi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Corsi
mesh_terms: D003474:Curcumin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003925:Diabetic Angiopathies / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D003930:Diabetic Retinopathy / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D004487:Edema / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017078:Laser-Doppler Flowmetry; D054709:Lecithins / Q000737:chemistry*; D008297:Male; D008833:Microcirculation; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D012160:Retina / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D054709:Lecithins; D003474:Curcumin