Vascular complications are the main cause of mortality and morbidity in diabetes. Mechanisms involved in the development of micro and macrovascular disease are complex and partially understood, but invariably begin as a dysfunctional endothelium. Nitric oxide is an important regulator of endothelial function and the impairment of its activity is determinant of the endothelial dysfunction. In type 1 diabetes, many factors like acute, chronic and post-prandial hyperglycemia, as well as the duration of diabetes or autonomic neuropathy and microalbuminuria are associated to endothelial dysfunction. Oxidative stress, polyol pathway activation, protein kinase C activation and the presence of advanced glycation end-products are potential mechanisms involved in the development of endothelial dysfunction. Early detection of endothelial dysfunction has prognostic value for the development of vascular complications and may be important in strategies for primary prevention of cardiovascular endpoints in type 1 diabetes.
Endothelial dysfunction; Type 1 diabetes; Nitric oxide; Atherosclerosis
