Comparison of plasma viscosity and fibrinogen concentration in African insulin-dependent and non-insulin-dependent diabetics with and without hypertension.

Alterations in Relative Plasma Viscosity (RPV) and Plasma Fibrinogen Concentration (PFC) were compared in 24 insulin-dependent (IDDM) and 33 non-insulin-dependent (NIDDM) black Nigerian diabetics, during the course of treatment. Both PFC and RPV were significantly (p less than 0.001) increased in the diabetics, as a group, compared to a non-diabetic control group. PFC and RPV showed consistently marginal, though insignificant, increases in the IDDM vs NIDDM. Hypertensive diabetics, as a group, had significantly greater PFC (p less than 0.025), and RPV (p less than 0.025) than normotensive diabetics. Although PFC was significantly (p less than 0.05) raised in hypertensive IDDM, there was no marked change in RPV, compared to normotensive IDDM. Neither PFC nor RPV revealed a significant change between hypertensive and normotensive NIDDM. The implication of the present findings is that insulin-dependent diabetics may be more prone than non-insulin-dependent diabetics to develop haemorheological and hence circulatory disorders.