Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Poor vitamin C status is associated with increased carotid intima-media thickness, decreased microvascular function, and delayed myocardial repolarization in young patients with type 1 diabetes.

Odermarsky, Michal LU orcid ; Lykkesfeldt, Jens and Liuba, Petru LU (2009) In The American journal of clinical nutrition 90. p.447-452
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Vascular endothelial dysfunction, accelerated thickening of arterial intima, and changes in ventricular repolarization contribute to increased cardiovascular morbidity in type 1 diabetes (T1D). Although vitamin C has important antioxidant functions and increased oxidative stress is a central mechanism of cardiovascular dysfunction in T1D, the relation between vitamin C and the cardiovascular system in young diabetic patients has not been investigated. OBJECTIVE: In a cohort of young patients with T1D, we investigated the relation of plasma concentrations of vitamin C with indexes of vascular function and structure and duration of the QT interval corrected for heart rate (QT(c)). DESIGN: Carotid artery intima-media thickness,... (More)
BACKGROUND: Vascular endothelial dysfunction, accelerated thickening of arterial intima, and changes in ventricular repolarization contribute to increased cardiovascular morbidity in type 1 diabetes (T1D). Although vitamin C has important antioxidant functions and increased oxidative stress is a central mechanism of cardiovascular dysfunction in T1D, the relation between vitamin C and the cardiovascular system in young diabetic patients has not been investigated. OBJECTIVE: In a cohort of young patients with T1D, we investigated the relation of plasma concentrations of vitamin C with indexes of vascular function and structure and duration of the QT interval corrected for heart rate (QT(c)). DESIGN: Carotid artery intima-media thickness, cutaneous microvascular function, and duration of the QT(c) interval were measured in 59 patients (mean age: 17 y; range: 10-22 y) with T1D (diabetes duration: 3-20 y). Plasma vitamin C was analyzed by HPLC with coulometric detection. RESULTS: Carotid artery intima-media thickness and duration of the QT(c) interval were higher in patients in the lowest tertile of vitamin C than in those in the highest tertile (P < 0.05 for both). The cutaneous microvascular response to acetylcholine was lower (P = 0.003) in the lowest tertile group than in the highest tertile group, but the response to sodium nitroprusside was not significantly different between these 2 groups. All differences remained significant after adjustment for age, sex, diabetes duration, body mass index, and glycated hemoglobin. CONCLUSIONS: In this relatively small-scale cross-sectional study of young patients with T1D, lower plasma concentrations of vitamin C seem to be associated with adverse changes in the microcirculation, peripheral arteries, and ventricular repolarization. Large-scale prospective studies are needed to confirm these results and to clarify the underlying mechanisms. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
The American journal of clinical nutrition
volume
90
pages
447 - 452
publisher
Oxford University Press
external identifiers
  • wos:000268152000028
  • pmid:19553299
  • scopus:67949118852
ISSN
1938-3207
DOI
10.3945/ajcn.2009.27602
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
a24fc141-f692-4f0a-b83b-1c9c0a1a0251 (old id 1433932)
alternative location
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19553299?dopt=Abstract
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 09:08:36
date last changed
2022-01-29 08:28:13
@article{a24fc141-f692-4f0a-b83b-1c9c0a1a0251,
  abstract     = {{BACKGROUND: Vascular endothelial dysfunction, accelerated thickening of arterial intima, and changes in ventricular repolarization contribute to increased cardiovascular morbidity in type 1 diabetes (T1D). Although vitamin C has important antioxidant functions and increased oxidative stress is a central mechanism of cardiovascular dysfunction in T1D, the relation between vitamin C and the cardiovascular system in young diabetic patients has not been investigated. OBJECTIVE: In a cohort of young patients with T1D, we investigated the relation of plasma concentrations of vitamin C with indexes of vascular function and structure and duration of the QT interval corrected for heart rate (QT(c)). DESIGN: Carotid artery intima-media thickness, cutaneous microvascular function, and duration of the QT(c) interval were measured in 59 patients (mean age: 17 y; range: 10-22 y) with T1D (diabetes duration: 3-20 y). Plasma vitamin C was analyzed by HPLC with coulometric detection. RESULTS: Carotid artery intima-media thickness and duration of the QT(c) interval were higher in patients in the lowest tertile of vitamin C than in those in the highest tertile (P &lt; 0.05 for both). The cutaneous microvascular response to acetylcholine was lower (P = 0.003) in the lowest tertile group than in the highest tertile group, but the response to sodium nitroprusside was not significantly different between these 2 groups. All differences remained significant after adjustment for age, sex, diabetes duration, body mass index, and glycated hemoglobin. CONCLUSIONS: In this relatively small-scale cross-sectional study of young patients with T1D, lower plasma concentrations of vitamin C seem to be associated with adverse changes in the microcirculation, peripheral arteries, and ventricular repolarization. Large-scale prospective studies are needed to confirm these results and to clarify the underlying mechanisms.}},
  author       = {{Odermarsky, Michal and Lykkesfeldt, Jens and Liuba, Petru}},
  issn         = {{1938-3207}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{447--452}},
  publisher    = {{Oxford University Press}},
  series       = {{The American journal of clinical nutrition}},
  title        = {{Poor vitamin C status is associated with increased carotid intima-media thickness, decreased microvascular function, and delayed myocardial repolarization in young patients with type 1 diabetes.}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.2009.27602}},
  doi          = {{10.3945/ajcn.2009.27602}},
  volume       = {{90}},
  year         = {{2009}},
}