The relationship between epicardial fat thickness and gestational diabetes mellitus.
OBJECTIVE
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with cardiovascular diseases; however, the relationship between epicardial fat thickness (EFT) and GDM remains unclear. The present study evaluates and compares EFT using transthoracic echocardiography in pregnant women with GDM.


METHODS
This cross-sectional study included 129 pregnant women in the third trimester: 65 with GDM (GDM group) and 64 with uncomplicated pregnancies (control group). As defined by the World Health Organization, the diagnosis of GDM was based on an abnormal 2-h oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) results. We used echocardiography to measure EFT in blood samples for all the participants.


RESULTS
The postprandial blood glucose level was significantly higher in the GDM group than in the control group (P < 0.001). There were no significant differences in BMI, heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure or lipid parameters between the groups. In the GDM group, isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT) parameters were significantly higher than in the control group. EFT was significantly higher in the GDM group (P < 0.001) and was correlated with postprandial glucose, BMI, age, and heart rate in both the groups. Only postprandial glucose and BMI remained significantly associated with EFT after multiple stepwise regression analysis.


CONCLUSIONS
Echocardiographically measured EFT was significantly higher in the patients with GDM. The findings show that EFT was strongly correlated with postprandial glucose.
Department of Cardiology, State hospital Aksaray, Aksaray, Turkey.
Gökay
G
Nar
Department of Cardiology, State hospital Aksaray, Aksaray, Turkey.
Sinan
S
Inci
Department of Cardiology, State hospital Gazi, Samsun, Turkey.
Gökhan
G
Aksan
Department of Endocrinology, State hospital Aksaray, Aksaray, Turkey.
Oguz Kağan
OK
Unal
Department of Biochemistry, State hospital Aksaray, Aksaray, Turkey.
Rukiye
R
Nar
Department of Cardiology, Scholl of Medicine, 19 Mayıs University, Samsun, Turkey.
Korhan
K
Soylu
Atherosclerosis; Diabetes mellitus; Transthoracic echocardiography