Serum cystatin C is independently associated with aortic arterial stiffness in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background: Higher cystatin C levels are associated with an increased cardiovascular risk. We evaluated the association between serum cystatin C and aortic arterial stiffness in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM).

Methods: Fasting blood samples were collected from 170 patients with type 2 DM. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) values > 10 m/s were used to define the high aortic arterial stiffness group.

Results: Sixty-seven patients with DM (39.4%) were defined as the high aortic arterial stiffness group. Patients with DM in the high aortic arterial stiffness group had older age (P = 0.003), higher systolic blood pressure (P < 0.001), diastolic blood pressure (P = 0.045), triglyceride (P = 0.046), blood urea nitrogen (P = 0.038), creatinine (P = 0.006), urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (P = 0.004), and serum cystatin C (P < 0.001) levels but lower estimated glomerular filtration rate (P < 0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that serum cystatin C level (each increase of 0.1 mg/l, odds ratio: 1.369, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.049-1.787, P = 0.021) was still an independent predictor of aortic arterial stiffness in patients with DM.

Conclusion: Serum cystatin C level positively correlated with aortic arterial stiffness among patients with type 2 DM.