The effects of diabetes mellitus on coronary artery diameters in patients with peripheral arterial disease

Patients and methods: A total of 79 patients (71 males, 8 females; mean age: 69.5±11.0 years) who were diagnosed with PAD and underwent coronary angiography in our center between August 2011 and September 2016 were included. The patients were divided into two groups as those with PAD+DM (Group 1) and those with PAD alone (Group 2). The measurements were done in two different angles and mean values were compared between the groups.

Results: The diameters of the proximal left anterior descending artery (2.8±0.5 vs 3.1±0.4; p=0.010), distal left anterior descending artery (2.3±0.5 vs 2.6±0.4; p=0.004), distal circumflex artery (1.9±0.4 vs 2.4±0.5, p=0.001), and distal right coronary artery (1.8±0.4 vs 2.2±0.6; p=0.002) were significantly smaller in patients with PAD+DM, compared to the PAD alone group.

Conclusion: Our study results suggest that coronary artery diameters, particularly distal segments, are decreased in PAD concomitant with DM, compared to patients with PAD alone.