Influence of Personal Exposure to Particulate Air Pollution on Cardiovascular Physiology and Biomarkers of Inflammation and Oxidative Stress in Subjects With Diabetes

Objective: We investigated whether personal exposure to particulate matter <=10 um in diameter (PM10) contributes to impaired cardiovascular function and increased systemic inflammation and oxidative stress in diabetic patients.

Methods: We monitored 25 patients' personal exposure to PM10 for 24 hours and then measured their heart rate, blood pressure, brachial arterial diameter, flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD), plasma cytokines, and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), which is an oxidative stress marker. We repeated this procedure for 7 weeks on each subject. We tested the associations using mixed-effects models.

Results: PM10 was significantly positively associated with FMD and TBARS but inversely associated with end-systolic basal brachial arterial diameter (P < 0.05). Moreover, in subjects not taking vasoactive medications, PM10 was significantly positively associated with blood pressure but inversely associated with artery flow.

Conclusion: Elevated PM10 may contribute to oxidative stress and impaired cardiovascular function in patients with diabetes mellitus.