Association of arterial stiffness with HbA1c in 1,000 type 2 diabetic patients with or without hypertension

The objective is to evaluate the association of arterial stiffness [brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (ba-PWV)] with glycemic control and duration of type 2 diabetes in diabetic subjects with or without hypertension. One thousand Chinese diabetic patients (562 with hypertension, 438 without hypertension) were included in this study. All patients underwent ba-PWV and biochemical measurements. Ba-PWV was significantly higher in diabetic subjects with hypertension than those without hypertension (1779 ± 341 vs. 1691 ± 342 cm/s, P < 0.0001), and these subjects were under similar glycemic control (6.9 ± 1.5 vs. 6.9 ± 1.3, P = 0.86). In diabetic and hypertensive subjects, ba-PWV was positively associated with HbA1c (1715 ± 314 vs. 1851 ± 335 cm/s, in subjects with HbA1c < 6.5% and with HbA1c > 7.0%, respectively, P < 0.0001), as well as duration of diabetes (1671 ± 342 vs. 1791 ± 313 vs. 1861 ± 338 cm/s, in subjects with duration of diabetes <5 years, 5–10 years, and >10 years, respectively, P all < 0.05). In diabetic subjects without hypertension, ba-PWV was not associated with HbA1c (P = 0.47), but associated with duration of diabetes (1503 ± 272 vs. 1692 ± 354 cm/s, in subjects with duration of diabetes <5 years and >10 years, respectively, P = 0.0013). Ba-PWV was higher in diabetic subjects with hypertension than in diabetic subjects without hypertension, suggesting the independent effect of hypertension on arterial stiffness in diabetic subjects. Ba-PWV positively correlated with HbA1c and duration of diabetes in subjects with diabetes and hypertension, suggesting the importance of early glycemic control in the prevention of arterial stiffness and vascular complications.