Assessment of left ventricular global longitudinal strain in patients with type 2 diabetes: Relationship with microvascular damage and glycemic control

Background and aims: Type 2 Diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is associated with a higher risk of Heart Failure; Left Ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction is often considered the first marker of Diabetic cardiomyopathy; however, early preclinical LV systolic dysfunction has also been observed by means of echocardiographic measurement of strain. This study is aimed at assessing determinants of impaired strain and diastolic ventricular dysfunction in patients with T2DM. Methods and results: Cross-sectional study, performed on a consecutive series of patients with T2DM aged 30–80 years, BMI<40 kg/m2, free of cardiovascular disease, assessing metabolic control, microvascular complications, echocardiographic measures. Out of 206 patients, 19.6% had GLS lower than 18. GLS showed a significant inverse correlation with HBA1c, (p = 0.016), BMI (p = 0.002), waist (p < 0.0001), and mean L:H Ratio (p = 0.019). In a multivariate regression for LV GLS including HbA1c, age, sex, BMI and mean RR SDNN index, only HbA1c retained statistical significance: (B = −0.050 [−0.091; −0.009], p = 0.01. Among markers of LV diastolic function, only the E/E’ ratio was associated with HbA1c at a univariate analysis, and it retained statistical significance in a multivariate regression including HbA1c, age, sex and disease duration (B = 0.038 [0.03; −0.073], p = 0.032). No significant difference in any parameter of systolic or diastolic function was observed between patients with or without microalbuminuria or diabetic retinopathy. Conclusion: In patients with T2DM, a reduced left ventricular global longitudinal strain appears to be independently associated with impaired glucose control and autonomic neuropathy, regardless of microvascular complications.