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Diabetes mellitus can cause cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy and is associated with increased cardiovascular deaths. We investigated cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy in diabetics and healthy controls by analysis of heart rate variability. Thirty-one diabetics and 30 age-and sexmatched controls were included. In the time domain we measured the mean R -R interval (NN), the standard deviation of the R -R interval index (SDNN), the standard deviation of the 5-min R -R interval mean (SDANN), the root mean square of successive R -R interval differences (RMSSD) and the percentage of beats with a consecutive R -R interval difference > 50 ms (pNN50). In the frequency domain we measured high-frequency power (HF), low-frequency power (LF) and the LF/HF ratio. Diabetes patients had lower values for time-domain and frequency-domain parameters than controls. Most heart rate variability parameters were lower in diabetes patients with chronic complications than in those without chronic complications.

Objective: To compare the standard risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD), de®ned in National Cholesterol Education Program II (NCEP II) of Turkish spinal cord injury (SCI) patients with healthy controls, discuss the results according to the ®ndings in Turkish population, and SCI patients in the literature. Design: We assessed 52 age and sex matched healthy control subjects, and 69 SCI patients (16 females, 53 males with the mean age of 33.9+11.37 years) with time since injury of 12.8+13.45 months. The study consisted of 45 paraplegics, and 24 tetraplegics with 54% incomplete, and 46% complete injury. Results: Risk factors for CHD according to NCEP II were; age and sex in 16%, positive family history in 0%, cigarette smoking in 54%, hypertension (HT) in 0%, high total cholesterol (TC) in 32%, high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) in 41%, low highdensity lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) in 52%, and diabetes mellitus (DM) in 7% of our SCI patients, respectively. Compared to controls DM, high TC, LDL, and low HDL were statistically more frequent in SCI patients. We found a negative correlation between serum HDL and time since injury. TC (186+32 vs 205+36; P=0.025), TC/HDL (5.34+1.17 vs 6.26+1.5; P=0.005), and LDL/HDL (3.57+0.9 vs 4.16+1.3; P=0.027) were signi®cantly increased in patients with time since injury of more than 1 year, while HDL levels (35.8+6.36 vs 33.86+6.47; P=0.213) decreased without reaching statistical signi®cance. The lipid pro®les did not show any correlation with the neurological level, and completeness of lesions. Conclusions: SCI confers additional CHD risk over that present inherently in the parent population due to enforced sedentary lifestyle and this increases with time since injury.The preliminary study consisting of 26 patients was accepted for poster presentation in

It was concluded that deltaP increased in patients with PAF and normal LA size. In controls with increased LA size, deltaP increased but did not reach the levels attained in patients with PAF. The AEF was decreased in patients with PAF but was preserved in those without PAF. These findings can be explained by the changes in LA microarchitecture which concurrently decreased atrial myocardial contraction, increased deltaP, and predisposed to PAF.