B. Suresh Reddy1, Bobba Kavitha Reddy2
BACKGROUND
Diabetes mellitus is a common chronic condition in our country and is an
established modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and ischemic stroke.
Carotid Doppler ultrasonography is a popular tool for evaluating atherosclerosis of
the carotid artery. Its two-dimensional grayscale can be used for measuring the
intima-media thickness, which is a very good biomarker for atherosclerosis and
can aid in plaque characterisation. We intend to evaluate carotid intimal thickness
by colour Doppler ultrasonography in type 2 diabetic individuals in a teaching
hospital.
METHODS
A prospective study was done among 70 cases of diabetes mellitus in whom
ultrasonography (USG) was done in the Department of General Medicine,
Maheshwara Medical College, Patancheru, Hyderabad, Telangana.
RESULTS
In the present study, study participants were in the age group of 20 - 70 years.
Majority of the cases was in the 41 - 50 years age group with a slight male
predominance and the male to female ratio was 1.8:1. In this study, intimal medial
thickness (IMT) change of 0.07 mm was observed. Within the observation period
of eight months, the IMT of diabetic patients increased by an average of 0.06 mm.
CONCLUSIONS
Colour Doppler ultrasonography of carotid is an important imaging modality for
early detection of carotid artery stenosis in diabetic patients who are at risk for
developing carotid atherosclerosis. It should be a routine practice to screen
diabetic patients for carotid atherosclerosis.
