ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of compound Danshen Dripping Pill (DSP) on carotid arterial intima-media thickness (IMT) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and thirty T2DM patients were assigned to four groups, 32 in the Group A, the control group treated with blood glucose (BG) and blood pressure (BP) controlling; 32 in the Group B, with BG, BP and blood lipid (BL) controlling, 32 in Group C with BG, BP, BL controlling and vitamin E administration, and 34 in Group D with BG, BP, BL controlling and DSP administration. Patients in Group D were subdivided by Chinese medicine syndrome differentiation into four types, 8 of Yin-deficiency with flourishing heat type (YDFH), 5 of both qi-yin deficient type (BQYD), 8 of both yin-yang deficient type (BYYD) and 13 of blood-stasis and qi-stagnant type (BSQS). Fasting blood glucose (FBG), BP and BL in patients were observed periodically, and IMT in them were measured by ultrasonography before treatment, as well as at the end of the 1st, 3rd, and 5th year of treatment to dynamically observe the changes of IMT and condition of plaque formation, and analyze the relation between them with FBG, BP and BL.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The 5-year follow-up was performed in 105 patients. In the observation period, level of total cholesterol (TC) showed a decreasing trend and level of high density cholesterol (HDL-C) showed an increasing trend in all the 4 groups, the improvements in Group C and D were slightly better than those in Group B, while significantly superior to those in Group A; the changes of FBG and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbAlc) were insignificant in the 4 groups. IMT and numbers of atheroma plaque increased gradually in all groups in the observation period, however, the changes in Group D were lesser than those in other groups, showing significant difference (P < 0.01). It was showed that the increasing of cervical carotid IMT in T2DM patients was correlated with levels of HbAlc, HDL-C, LDL-C, triglyceride and TC, especially in Group D.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>DSP might delay the occurrence and development of diabetic macro-vascular disease.</p>