July 30, 2001
Complications
Question from Cookeville, Tennessee, USA:
Are strokes more prevalent in people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes than in other people? If this is true, what contributes to a stroke?
Answer:
Strokes, just as other forms of vascular disease (heart attacks, peripheral vascular disease), are more common in people with diabetes. This is true whether it is type 1 or type 2 diabetes. It appears that the diabetic environment is a pro-coagulant environment with many direct and indirect mechanisms working. For instance, the elevated glucose environment causes glucose to stick to structural proteins changing their function. There is increased oxidation and cell damage to the lining cells in blood vessels. There is an increase in pro-coagulant proteins in the liver. There are many other possible explanations to add to this list.
JTL
