COMPARISON OF THE DIAMETER AND CAROTID INTIMA MEDIA THICKNESS IN DIABETIC PATIENTS WITH AND WITH METABOLIC SYNDROME ON ULTRASOUND

Abstract

Objective: This objective of this study was to compare the diameter and intima media thickness of carotid arteries in diabetic patients with and without metabolic syndrome on ultrasound examination.

Methodology: This cross sectional study was conducted at Radiology department of Lahore General Hospital (LGH) and completed in 6 months using non-probability purposive sampling. We took 100 cases, 50 diabetic patients (group-A) without metabolic syndrome and 50 diabetics with metabolic syndrome (group-B). All patients 20-90 years of age of either sex presenting with confirmed type 2 diabetes mellitus with and without metabolic syndrome were taken in this study. Patients with stroke due to secondary causes like trauma, impaired coagulation or tumor were excluded from this study. Patient’s age, gender, IMT, and diameter of Right CCA, Left CCA, Right ICA and Left ICA were measured and compared in both study groups.

Results: In this study mean age of patients in group – A was 49.04 ± 9.78 years and in group-B the mean age 53.72 ± 53.72 years. Intima media thickness (IMT) of right and left CCA and right ICA was statistically higher in group-B (1.10 ± 0.2, 1.09 ± 0.21 and 0.47 ±0.02) as compared to group-A (0.79±0.12, 0.78±0.13 and 0.45±0.03), p-value < 0.001 while IMT of left ICA was statistically same in both groups (in group-A 0.46±0.03 and group B was 0.47±0.03), p-value > 0.05. Diameter of right and left CCA was significantly higher in group-B (6.79±0.1 and 6.66 ± 0.297) as compared to group-A (6.52±0.19 and 6.47±0.32), p-value < 0.001 and diameter of right ICA and left ICA was statistically same in both groups, p-value > 0.05.

Conclusion: Since diabetic patients with metabolic syndrome are at greater risk of developing increased CCA-IMT and increase in CCA-IMT is associated with all subtypes of ischemic stroke, carotid plaque and cardiovascular deaths. So early detection is needed to identify individuals at risk and further prospective studies are recommended to demonstrate the regression of carotid IMT with management of metabolic syndrome in Type 2 DM patients.