Metabolic differences in healthy first-degree female relatives of type 2 diabetic patients]

Introduction: Today the prevalence of type 2 diabetes reached an epidemic level. It is known that type 2 diabetes could only be prevented before the manifestation, during the "prediabetic" state, urging the development of diagnostic tests to recognize the group at risk in time. Aim: The authors explored metabolic differences between healthy, normal glucose tolerant, normal insulin resistant females having first degree relatives with and without type 2 diabetes. Method: Healthy, normal insulin sensitive females without (n = 26) and with (n = 18) type 2 diabetic relatives were investigated. Results: Healthy females with first degree diabetic relatives had lower low density lipoproteins and higher high density lipoproteins as well as higher glucose and insulin levels at the 120 min of oral glucose test as compared to those without first degree diabetic relatives. Conclusions: These results suggest that the appearance of insulin resistance is preceded by hepatic insulin resistance and impaired lipid metabolism in the symptom-free prediabetic period of genetically suceptible females.