Role of elevated lipids in diabetic cardiomyopathy.

Diabetic cardiac dysfunction appears to be associated with an increase in plasma lipids especially triglycerides. Drugs that lower plasma lipids will usually improve cardiac performance in diabetic rats. More recently, an association between decreased cardiac glucose metabolism resulting from increased utilization of fatty acid metabolism in the diabetic myocardium has been suggested. Of the drugs tested, those drugs that decreased plasma lipids and improved cardiac glucose metabolism also improved cardiac performance. Drugs, such as clofibrate, which decreased triglyceride levels and did not enhance cardiac performance in diabetic rats will be examined in the near future in order to test the hypothesis.