Relationship Between Coronary Flow Reserve and Glycated Hemoglobin in Patients With Diabetes Mellitus Using Radionuclide Myocardial Perfusion Imagin
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51253/pafmj.v76iSUPPL-3.14212Keywords:
Coronary Flow Reserve; Diabetes Mellitus; Glycated Hemoglobin; Myocardial Perfusion Imaging; Single Photon Emission Computed TomographyAbstract
Objective: To evaluate the relationship between coronary flow reserve (CFR) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus using radionuclide myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI).
Study Design: Analytical Cross-Sectional Study.
Place and Duration of Study: Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC), Rawalpindi, Pakistan, from Jun to Dec 2025.
Methodology: Ninety-eight adults (18–70 years), irrespective of gender, with type 2 diabetes mellitus referred for myocardial perfusion imaging were screened. Consecutive sampling was used to enroll all eligible patients who met the inclusion criteria during the study period. Patients with obstructive substantial valvular disease, left ventricular ejection fraction less than 50%, and coronary artery disease, arrhythmias, or advanced renal impairment were excluded. All participants underwent standardized SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging with pharmacological stress were indicated to all patients. Coronary flow reserve was calculated from stress-to-rest myocardial tracer uptake. Glycemic control was assessed by HbA1c using a Roche analyzer.
Results: There were ninety-eight patients; 45 (45.9%) had adequate glycemic control (HbA1c <7%), while 53 (54.1%) had poor control (HbA1c ≥7%). with comparable mean ages between groups (48.42±12.31 vs. 48.59±10.89 years). A statistically significant inverse relationship was witnessed between HbA1c levels and CFR. (r =−0.289, p=0.004) Compared to patients with good glycemic control, those with poor glycemic control had noticeably lower CFR.
Conclusion: Coronary flow reserve using radionuclide myocardial perfusion imaging provides a valuable noninvasive tool for early detection of microvascular dysfunction. Clinically, this underscores the importance of strict glycemic control to preserve coronary microvascular integrity and potentially reduce long-term cardiovascular risk.
Downloads
References
1. Cinti F, Morciano C, Guarneri A. Coronary flow reserve increase after 4-year dapagliflozin treatment in patients with type 2 diabetes: the DAPAHEART follow-up study. Cardiovasc Diabetol 2025; 24: 351.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12933-025-02912-4
2. Sharrack N, Knott KD, Gulsin GS. Metformin associates with higher myocardial perfusion reserve and survival in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients. Sci Rep 2024; 14: 27280.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-77280-2
3. Jafar TH, Jafary FH, Jessani S, Chaturvedi N. Heart disease epidemic in Pakistan: women and men at equal risk. Am Heart J 2022; 150(2): 221-226.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ahj.2004.09.025
4. Takir M, Ozcan FB. Association between glomerular hyperfiltration and coronary flow velocity reserve in patients with gestational diabetes history. Biomol Biomed 2024; 25(6): 1345-1350.
https://doi.org/10.17305/bb.2024.10940
5. Chen D, Zhang Y, Yidilisi A. Combined risk estimates of diabetes and coronary angiography derived index of microcirculatory resistance in patients with non-ST elevation myocardial infarction. Cardiovasc Diabetol 2024; 23: 300. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12933-024-02400-1
6. American Diabetes Association. Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes-2024. Diabetes Care 2024; 47(Suppl 1): S158-S192.
https://doi.org/10.2337/dc11-S011
7. Magliano DJ, Boyko EJ; Diabetes Atlas 11th edition scientific committee. Diabetes Atlas [Internet]. 11th edition. Brussels: International Diabetes Federation; 2025. 3. The global picture of diabetes. Available from:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK618744/
8. Feng L, Zhang Y, Zhang C, Chen Z, Pan J, Gao Z, et al. Prognostic impact of type 2 diabetes mellitus and coronary microvascular dysfunction in patients undergoing rotational atherectomy during PCI. Cardiovasc Diabetol 2025; 24(1): 298.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12933-025-02868-5
9. Niewiara Ł. Impaired coronary flow reserve in patients with poor type 2 diabetes control: results from a microvascular dysfunction registry. Cardiol J 2024; 31: 185-192.
https://doi.org/10.5603/CJ.a2022.0100
10. Yang Z, Lin S, Liu Y, Ren Q, Ge Z, Wang C et al. Traditional Chinese medicine in coronary microvascular disease. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13: 929159.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2022.929159
11. Murthy VL, Naya M, Foster CR, Gaber M, Hainer J, Klein J, Dorbala S, Blankstein R, Di Carli MF. Association between coronary vascular dysfunction and cardiac mortality in patients with and without diabetes mellitus. Circulation 2012; 126(15): 1858-1868.
https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.112.120402
12. Chen J, Yin D, Dou K. Intensified glycemic control by HbA1c for patients with coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes: review of findings. Cardiovasc Diabetol 2023; 22(1): 146.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12933-023-01875-8
13. Zhang W, Singh S, Liu L. Prognostic value of coronary microvascular dysfunction assessed by coronary angiography-derived index of microcirculatory resistance in diabetic patients with chronic coronary syndrome. Cardiovasc Diabetol 2022; 21: 222. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12933-022-01653-y
14. Jensen SM, Prescott EI, Abdulla J. The prognostic value of coronary flow reserve in patients with non-obstructive coronary artery disease and microvascular dysfunction: a systematic review and meta-analysis with focus on imaging modality and sex difference. Int J Cardiovasc Imaging 2023; 39(12): 2545-2556.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10554-023-02948-1
15. Green R, Cantoni V, Acampa W, Assante R, Zampella E, Nappi C, et el. Prognostic value of coronary flow reserve in patients with suspected or known coronary artery disease referred to PET myocardial perfusion imaging: A meta-analysis. J Nucl Cardiol 2021; 28(3): 904-918.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12350-019-02000-7
16. Sayed A, Alwan M, Al Yaman A, Al Rifai M, Al-Mallah MH. Stress and Rest Myocardial Blood Flow to Complement Myocardial Flow Reserve in Risk Prediction for Patients Being Evaluated for Known or Suspected Coronary Artery Disease. Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging 2025: jeaf371.
https://doi.org/10.1093/ehjci/jeaf371
17. Kadoya Y, Da Silva E, AlTakroni LA, Hejji N, Boczar KE, Chow BJW, deKemp RA, Ruddy TD, Beanlands RS, Small GR. Prognostic Utility of Quantitative Perfusion PET in Patients With Prior CABG: Incremental Value of Myocardial Flow Reserve and Coronary Vascular Resistance. Circ Cardiovasc Imaging 2025; 18(12): e018204.
https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCIMAGING.125.018204
18. Martins AM, Nobre Menezes M, Alves da Silva P, Almeida AG. Multimodality Imaging in the Diagnosis of Coronary Microvascular Disease: An Update. J Pers Med 2025; 15(2): 75.
https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm15020075
19. Agarwal A, Patel R, Khalique OK. Coronary Microvascular Dysfunction: Bridging the Diagnosis-Treatment Divide in Women with INOCA-A Review. J Clin Med 2025; 14(17): 6054.
https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14176054
20. Ayub MT, Kalra D. Coronary Microvascular Dysfunction and the Role of Noninvasive Cardiovascular Imaging. Diagnostics 2020; 10(9): 679. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics10090679
21. Xiong X, Wang J, Ren L, Li Z, Liu Y, Xia P. The emerging pathological mechanism of coronary microvascular dysfunction: a narrative review. Metab Target Organ Damage 2025; 5(4): N-A. https://doi.org/10.20517/mtod.2025.71
22. Marija B, Lidija M, Marko R, Milorad T, Snezana T, Marija B. From Echo to Coronary Angiography: Optimizing Ischemia Evaluation Through Multimodal Imaging. Medicina 2025; 61(12): 2212. https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina61122212
Downloads
Published
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Muhammad Faheem, Saima seher, Muhammad Nadir Khan, Kiran Nisa, Ateeq ur Rehman Khan, Sobia mehreen

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.





