[Diabetes mellitus and its vascular manifestations]

In 1,796 diabetics who died from 1957-1971 the average age of life, the causes of death and the average age in the individual stages of arteriosclerosis of the aorta, the coronary and cerebral vessels were followed up. This was compared with the same number of non-diabetics of the same age. It was shown that in the individual stage of arteriosclerosis there is no essential difference between diabetics and non-diabetics, however, not in the frequency of the individual stages of arteriosclerosis. The arteriosclerosis of III. degree is essentially more frequent in diabetics than in non-diabetics. The greatest difference is present in coronary sclerosis in men as well as in women. The more frequent appearance of the myocardial infaraction in diabetics in comparison to non-diabetics, the survival time, the effect of therapy as well as the disturbed glucose tolerance in myocardial infarction are discussed.