Association of matrix γ-carboxyglutamic acid protein levels with insulin resistance and Lp(a) in diabetes: A cross-sectional study.

Aims: The risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality is increased in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), with a background role of vascular calcification in the development of CVD also reported. Studies have demonstrated that high lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) levels accelerate the development of atherosclerolsis and are potentially involved in the vascular calcification. Matrix Gla Protein (MGP) seems to play an important role in vascular calcification.

Heart rate variability in advanced chronic kidney disease with or without diabetes: midterm effects of the initiation of chronic haemodialysis therapy.

Background: Previous studies in different clinical settings have established heart rate variability (HRV) as a significant independent risk factor for higher mortality and cardiac death. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of chronic haemodialysis therapy on time- and frequency-domain parameters of HRV in diabetic and non-diabetic patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).

Methods: We studied 25 patients with stage 4 CKD and type 2 diabetes mellitus (CKD4+DM), 25 patients with stage 4 CKD without diabetes (CKD4), 25 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) and 25 healthy subjects (HS).

High prevalence of subclinical peripheral artery disease in Greek hospitalized patients.

BACKGROUND: Peripheral artery disease (PAD) represents a common manifestation of systemic atherosclerosis that is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular death and ischemic events but one that may be underdiagnosed in clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to identify PAD using the ankle-brachial index (ABI) in hospitalized patients from a Department of Internal Medicine and to further investigate the association of this index with traditional cardiovascular risk factors. METHODS: We measured ABI in 990 consecutive patients (400 men and 590 women) aged 50 years or older (71.