Relationship of leptin level with metabolic disorders and hypertension in Japanese type 2 diabetes mellitus patients.

Leptin is considered to play an important role in the regulation of body weight and metabolism in obese individuals. However, the relationship of leptin with metabolic disorders or vascular complications in type 2 diabetic patients has yet to be elucidated. In this study, we investigated the association of leptin levels with clinical parameters (glycemic control, lipid levels, abdominal fat distribution) and investigated the leptin levels of diabetic patients with and without vascular complications in Japanese diabetic patients. In male and female patients, leptin levels were significantly associated with body mass index (BMI), percent body fat, insulin level, triglyceride (TG) level, total abdominal fat area (TFA), visceral fat area (VFS), and subcutaneous fat area (SFA). Only in male patients, leptin levels were inversely correlated with HDL-cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and HbA(1C). Leptin levels in male and female patients with hypertension were higher than in those without hypertension. Leptin levels of both males and females with angiopathy were not statistically different from those without angiopathy. In conclusion, leptin is involved in various metabolic disorders and hypertension, and we speculate that it may not be strongly associated with vascular complications in Japanese diabetic individuals.