Early rheological and microcirculatory changes in children with type I diabetes mellitus.

In order to determine early changes in microcirculation and hemorheological parameters in diabetics, a cross-sectional study was carried out with 273 children with diabetes mellitus type I during their vacation in a state country convalescent home for diabetic children and teenagers in Kaiserslautern. Compared to healthy children, typical changes of hemorheological variables as well as in the microcirculation of the skin and retina are observed in poorly controlled diabetic children. Morphological changes are obvious in capillary areas in form of marked capillary contortions and dilatations of venous branches, rigid erythrocytes, and hyperaggregable thrombocytes. An effort should be undertaken to normalize the pathologically changed parameters of blood fluidity and the microcirculation by an adequate control of blood glucose, and possibly by changes in dietary habits.