RESUMO
This study evaluated the plasma level of von Willebrand factor [vWF] in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus [NIDDM] patients with and without microalbuminuria [MA] to elucidate whether MA is a consequent of endothelial injury. This work was enrolled on 30 NIDDM patients classified into three groups, each including 10 age matched subjects. Group I included normoalbuminuric patients, group II included microalbuminuric patients and group III included microalbuminuric patients complicated by coronary artery disease [CAD], in addition to 10 healthy normoalbuminuric age matched control subjects. Von Willebrand factor, malondialdehyde [MDA], vitamin C, erythrocyte reduced glutathione [GSH], albumin execration rate [AER], total cholesterol, LDL and HDL cholesterol, urea and creatinine were measured in all patients groups and control group. It can be concluded that NIDDM is characterized by many metabolic disorders including excessive oxidative stress, deficiency of antioxidants and dyslipidemia, resulting in endothelial injury, which can be marked by an elevation of vWF level even before the development of microalbuminuria. Thus, microalbuminuria might be considered a consequence of endothelial dysfunction