Plasma lipid peroxidation in
noninsulin dependent diabetes mellitus (DM) patients were evaluated in DM patients undergoing
hemodialysis (HD) by means of a chemiluminescence-HPLC for the specific determination of
phosphatidylcholine hydroperoxide (
PCOOH). Thirty-three uremic patients with DM nephropathy, undergoing 12 hours HD a week using
polymethylmethacrylate membrane, were studied. Of them 22 DM patients on HD were divided into 2 age and sex matched groups treated and conventional group in order to clarify
therapeutic effect of 500 mg alfa-
tocopherol and 600 mg
probucol daily. Fifty DM patients without
end-stage renal disease (
ESRD) who were age-, period of diabetes-, and sex-matched, were selected as positive control of the subjects. Plasma
PCOOH levels were significantly elevated in both DM patients, while the plasma
PCOOH in normal controls were 227.0 +/- 68.7 pmol/ml. Plasma
PCOOH levels of DM patients undergoing HD were significantly higher than that of patients without
ESRD (1,330.8 +/- 642.7 pmol/ml vs. 756.6 +/- 431.9 pmol/ml, p < 0.025). Partial correlation coefficient of plasma
PCOOH level demonstrated
PCOOH and period of HD in DM patients were highly significantly positively correlated (p < 0.01), although single session of HD was not found to produce significantly increased lipid-peroxidation. Plasma
PCOOH roughly remained within similar levels as base lines by medication with
anti-oxidant compared to that of conventional group. From these results we conclude that HD intensifies lipid peroxidation and such accumulation of
hydroperoxide could account for accelerated progress of
atherosclerosis in DM patients with
renal insufficiency. It is worthwhile to try an administration of
free radical scavenger in order to reduce
PCOOH and slow down the progression of atherosclerotic
vascular disease.