Diabetic vascular disease. The importance of insulin deficiency, hyperglycemia and hypophosphatemia on red cell oxygen unloading.

Diabetes is associated with a fluctuating impairment in oxygen transport of the erythrocytes. This impairment is correlated with hyperglycemia by the formation of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbAIC) and with inhibitory factors of glycolysis i.e. hypophosphatemia and acidosis which lower the concentration of red cell 2,3-diphosphoglycerate. Diabetic angiopathy may be the ultimate result of innumerable microvascular responses to discrete hypoxic injuries associated with increased plasma permeation through the vessel walls. It is shown that two additional risk factors for atherosclerosis--smoking and hypertriglyceridemia may also lead to arterial wall hypoxia by changing the position of the oxyhemoglobin dissociation curve.