Effect of obesity on endogenous fibrinolytic activity in diabetes mellitus.

Examination of the fibrinolytic system of 221 diabetics with varying grades of under- and overweight revealed not only an elevated fibrinogen level and a significantly decreases spontaneous and stimulated fibrinolytic activity in obesity, but also a highly significantly decreased activity of plasminogen activator of the vessel walls in these patients. Similar, but less marked, changes were found in obese non-diabetics. Thes changes imply a decreased ability to remove fibrin deposits within the lumina of small and large vessels and thus an increased risk of thrombosis, and they may be closely related to the high frequency of late complications in diabetes mellitus.