Association of serum vaspin levels with the presence and severity of peripheral arterial disease in type 2 diabetic patients

Objective: Vaspin, a newly discovered adipokine, is implicated to play an anti-atherosclerosis role. This study aims to determine the association of serum levels of vaspin with the presence and severity of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: This study consisted of 340 T2DM patients (160 without PAD and 180 with PAD). Serum levels of vaspin were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Results: T2DM patients with PAD had significantly lower serum vaspin levels compared with those without PAD. Multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated that serum vaspin levels were inversely associated with the presence of PAD in T2DM patients (OR 0.002, 95% CI 0.000 to 0.014; P<0.001). Simple linear regression analysis showed that the serum levels of vaspin were negatively correlated with body mass index (BMI), triglycerides (TG), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and positively correlated with ankle-brachial index (ABI) in T2DM patients. Furthermore, only HOMA-IR and ABI remained associated with serum vaspin after multiple stepwise regression analysis. Conclusion: Decreased serum vaspin levels are associated with the presence and severity of PAD in T2DM patients.