Dysglycemia and the Density of the Coronary Vasa Vasorum

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to determine the relationship between dysglycemia and the coronary artery vasa vasorum density. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: The left anterior descending coronary artery was removed from 57 deceased individuals during autopsy, and the capillaries in the vessel wall were identified using fluorescent immunohistochemical staining. HbA_1c was determined in postmortem whole blood for each individual. The density of the vasa vasorum in the intima-media and the adventitia was manually quantified and recorded by readers unaware of the individual's other characteristics. RESULTS: The individuals with diabetes had a lower density of the coronary vasa vasorum than those without diabetes. The higher the HbA_1c, the lower the density of these vessels in the adventitia and entire vessel wall. CONCLUSIONS: Dysglycemia-induced damage to the vasa vasorum may promote ischemic heart disease in people with diabetes.