Iain D. Wilkinson1, Tim Hughes1, Josie M. Reeve1, Elaine Cachia1, Daniel Warren1, Paul D. Griffiths1, Solomon Tesfaye2, Dinesh Selvarajah2
1Academic Radiology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S Yorkshire, United Kingdom; 2Diabetes, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, S Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Increased stroke risk in diabetes highlights the importance of internal carotid artery (ICA) functional status. ICA flow was assessed in 13 type-2 diabetics, 12 with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT, pre-diabetes) and 18 healthy volunteers (HV) using quantitative PCA before and after pharmacological stress. Resting ICA velocity was significantly lower in diabetics compared to HVs (p=0.05). All groups demonstrated significant increases in flow and velocity post-acetazolamide (p=<0.001). ICA-cerebrovascular reserve was greater in HV [59(15)%] than diabetics [46(16)%; p<0.05] and IGT [40(20)%; p<0.01]. These results suggest macrovascular cerebral abnormalities in those susceptible to, as well in, diabetes, indicating possible autoregulatory dysfunction.