One hundred seventy-two patients with type 2 diabetes without overt heart disease were prospectively enrolled and underwent echocardiography with speckle-tracking imaging to assess global LV 蔚L at baseline and at 3 years. The associations between alteration in 蔚L (defined as |蔚L| < 18%), LV geometry at baseline, and LV remodeling over time were evaluated.
Among the 172 enrolled patients, 154 completed 3-year follow-up. At baseline, patients with 蔚L alteration had higher LV end-systolic volumes (28 ± 11 vs 23 ± 9 mL, P < .001) and relative wall thicknesses (RWT; 0.44 ± 0.06 vs 0.40 ± 0.07, P = .008) compared with those with normal 蔚L. At 3-year follow-up, RWTs remained stable in both groups. LV volumes significantly decreased in patients with normal 蔚L but not in patients with 蔚L alteration. Multivariate analysis showed that 蔚L alteration was independently associated with LV end-systolic volume (尾 = 5.0, P = .006) and RWT (尾 = 0.03, P = .03) at baseline and with changes in both LV end-diastolic volume (尾 = 19.1, P = .001) and LV end-systolic volume (尾 = 2.6, P = .047) over 3 years.
In patients with type 2 diabetes, 蔚L alteration was associated with higher RWT and LV volumes and with the absence of decreases in LV volumes over time, which might be an early sign of adverse LV remodeling.