We investigated the relationship between MPO and disease progression in diabetic patients. 881 patients with angiographic coronary artery disease underwent serial evaluation of atherosclerotic burden with intravascular ultrasound. Disease progression in diabetic (n聽=聽199) and non-diabetic (n聽=聽682) patients, stratified by baseline MPO levels was investigated.
MPO levels were similar in patients with and without diabetes (1362 vs. 1255聽pmol/L, p聽=聽0.43). No relationship was observed between increasing quartiles of MPO and either baseline (p聽=聽0.81) or serial changes (p聽=聽0.43) in levels of percent atheroma volume (PAV) in non-diabetic patients. In contrast, increasing MPO quartiles were associated with accelerated PAV progression in diabetic patients (p聽=聽0.03). While optimal control of lipid and the use of high-dose statin were associated with less disease progression, a greater benefit was observed in diabetic patients with lower compared with higher MPO levels at baseline.
Increasing MPO levels are associated with greater progression of atherosclerosis in diabetic patients. This finding indicates the potential importance of MPO pathways in diabetic cardiovascular disease.