To eva
luate re
lationships between ear
ly a
lterations in b
lood pressure and the progression of microvascu
lar comp
lications of diabetes in c
linica
lly-normotensive patients with type 1 diabetes (T1DM).
Methods
In a prospective observational study of 85 normotensive T1DM patients without microalbuminuria, blood pressure (BP) was monitored over 24 h using the ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) system at baseline and 7 years later. Development or progression of microalbuminuria, retinopathy and hypertension was evaluated.
Results
Initially, 20 patients (24%) were diagnosed with masked hypertension and 31 (37%) with non-dipper pattern as the only pathological findings. At 7 years: 1) twenty-seven patients (32%) had progression of retinopathy related to the nocturnal diastolic blood pressure (BPD) (OR:1.122; p = 0.034) and final non-dipper pattern (OR:5.857; p = 0.005); 2) seven patients (10%) developed microalbuminuria for which nocturnal systolic blood pressure (BPS) was a risk factor (OR:1.129; p = 0.007); 3) five of the normotensive patients (9%) progressed to hypertension; historic HbA1c (OR:2.767; p = 0.046) and nocturnal BPD (OR:1.243; p = 0.046) being the related risk factors. BPD level ≥ 65 mmHg was associated with an increase in progression of retinopathy and hypertension.
Conclusions
In T1DM patients there is an elevated prevalence of BP alterations, detected using ABPM. Alterations in nocturnal BP predispose to development/progression of microvascular complications and overt hypertension.