Assessment of left ventricular function at different levels of exercise using gold-195m in asymptomatic diabetics

Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was evaluated by gold-195m first pass ventriculography in 10 diabetic patients with microangiopathy, in 10 diabetics without any complications, and in 10 healthy controls during maximum exercise. No differences among groups were present at rest, but at maximal exercise LVEF was significantly lower in microangiopathic patients than in the other two groups. Also muscle blood flow measured by xenon-133 washout was significantly lower during exercise in microangiopathic subjects. Small-vessel involvement of myocardium and muscle could play a role in the development of cardiovascular abnormalities during exercise in diabetics