title: Mean platelet volume and arterial stiffness in patients with acromegaly.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There are still contradictory data in the literature whether patients with acromegaly are under risk in terms of atherosclerotic heart disease. Increased arterial stiffness develops before atherosclerosis and is evaluated to be a risk factor for atherosclerosis. Mean platelet volume (MPV) is currently gaining interest as a new independent cardiovascular risk factor. There are contrasting views about arterial stiffness in patients with acromegaly. There is no report in literature studying MPV in acromegaly patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate MPV and arterial stiffness in patients with acromegaly.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was designed as an observational cross-sectional, case-controlled study. Twenty-eight patients with acromegaly and 22 healthy volunteers were recruited for the study. The arteriography device Mobil-O-Graph® (IEM GmbH. Stolberg, Germany) which can perform oscillometric measurements was used to measure arterial stiffness. The Mann-Whitney U test, Student's t-test, Spearman's nonparametric correlation analysis and the chi-square test were used to statistical analyze.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) value was found to be 6.41 ± 2.12 m/s in the patient group with active acromegaly and 5.24 ± 1.04 m/s in the healthy control group. The difference was statistically significant (p=0.03). The mean MPV value was found to be 9.68 ± 1.11 in the patient group with active acromegaly and 8.53 ± 1.18 in the healthy control group. There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups (p=0.004). In patients with acromegaly, a positive correlation was found between MPV and insulin-like growth hormone-I (IGF-1) level (p=0.021, r=0.434).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We determined an increase in aortic PWV and MPV in patients with acromegaly. In conclusion, evaluation of MPV and arterial stiffness in future studies could be beneficial in determining the risks for cardiovascular disease in patients with acromegaly.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Faculty of Medicine, Adnan Menderes University; Aydın-Turkey. drmunubol@yahoo.com.tr.
authors.forename: Mustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Unübol
authors.forename: Engin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Güney
authors.forename: Mevlüt
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Türe
authors.forename: Ufuk
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Eryılmaz
mesh_terms: D000172:Acromegaly / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000378:metabolism*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D014463:Ultrasonography; D059289:Vascular Stiffness