Levels of von Willebrand factor, insulin resistance syndrome, and a common vWF gene polymorphism in non-insulin-dependent (type 2) diabetes mellitus.

To examine the association between von Willebrand Factor (vWF) concentrations and features of the insulin resistance syndrome, 208 patients with Type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes (NIDDM) and 80 healthy controls were studied. A restriction fragment length polymorphism in exon 12 of the vWF gene, detected by Aat II endonuclease, was also examined. vWF concentrations were elevated in the patient group (patients 1.28 IU ml-1 vs controls 1.12 IU ml-1, p = 0.003). Genotype frequencies were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and genotype did not relate to vWF levels: means (95% CI) were AA 1.29 (1.29-1.44) IU ml-1 n = 3; AG 1.28 (1.22-1.26) IU ml-1 n = 48; GG 1.29 (1.25-1.39) IU ml-1 n = 155. vWF correlated with age (r = 0.23 p < 0.0005), duration of diabetes (r = 0.23, p < 0.001), and fibrinogen (r = 0.22, p = 0.002) in the patient group, but was unrelated to blood lipids, HbA1C, body mass index, glucose, hypertension, and smoking. In a linear regression model, age and insulin remained as independent predictors of vWF levels, explaining 16% of inter-individual variance in the patient group. In conclusion, these findings show vWF concentrations are elevated in NIDDM and are weakly related to features of the insulin resistance syndrome. No relationship was demonstrated between the gene polymorphism studied and vWF concentrations in this group.