[Diabetes mellitus and microcirculation. Significance of diabetic angiopathy for the prognosis and course of diabetes mellitus, possibilities and bases of angiologic therapy].

The importance of diabetic angiopathy for prognosis and course of diabetes mellitus, possibilities and basis of angiological therapy Complications originating from the vascular system determine life expectancy of the diabetic patient. He is particularly endangered by apoplexy, heart attack, arteriosclerosis of the lower extremities, retino- and nephropathy. Microangiopathy is a specific diabetic problem, the development of which shows a clear dependency on the quality of metabolism. Conventional therapy of circulatory problems today is less concerned with the vascular system than with the qualities of blood viscosity. In this context, viscosity is of main concern. Particularly in microcirculation viscosity is dependent on blood factors such as: haematocrit, plasmaviscosity, erythrocytes and thrombocytes. Their changed behaviour results, in the case of diabetes mellitus, in an increase in viscosity partly dependent on metabolism. A promising concept of treatment is available by pharmaceutically influencing the alteration of erythrocytes.