Diagnostic significance of a mild decrease of baroreflex sensitivity with respect to heart rate in type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Decreased baroreflex sensitivity is an early sign of autonomic dysfunction in patients with type-1 diabetes mellitus. We evaluated the repeatability of a mild baroreflex sensitivity decrease in diabetics with respect to their heart rate. Finger blood pressure was continuously recorded in 14 young diabetics without clinical signs of autonomic dysfunction and in 14 age-matched controls for 42 min. The recordings were divided into 3-min segments, and the mean inter-beat interval (IBI), baroreflex sensitivity in ms/mm Hg (BRS) and mHz/mm Hg (BRSf) were determined in each segment. These values fluctuated in each subject within 42 min and therefore coefficients of repeatability were calculated for all subjects. Diabetics compared with controls had a decreased mean BRS (p=0.05), a tendency to a shortened IBI (p=0.08), and a decreased BRSf (p=0.17). IBI correlated with BRS in diabetics (p=0.03); this correlation was at p=0.12 in the controls. BRSf was IBI independent (controls: p=0.81, diabetics: p=0.29). We conclude that BRS is partially dependent on mean IBI. Thus, BRS reflects not only an impairment of the quick baroreflex responses of IBI to blood pressure changes, but also a change of the tonic sympathetic and parasympathetic heart rate control. This is of significance during mild changes of BRS. Therefore, an examination of the BRSf index is highly recommended, because this examination improves the diagnostic value of the measurement, particularly in cases of early signs of autonomic dysfunction.