Clinical studies have suggested that changes in peripheral nerve microcirculation may contribute to nerve damage in diabetic polyneuropathy (DN). High-sensitivity troponin T (hsTNT) assays have been recently shown to provide predictive values for both cardiac and peripheral microangiopathy in type 2 diabetes (T2D). This study investigated the association of sciatic nerve structural damage in 3 Tesla (3T) magnetic resonance neurography (MRN) with hsTNT and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide serum levels in patients with T2D. MRN at 3T was performed in 51 patients with T2D (23 without DN, 28 with DN) and 10 control subjects without diabetes. The sciatic nerve’s fractional anisotropy (FA), a marker of structural nerve integrity, was correlated with clinical, electrophysiological, and serological data. In patients with T2D, hsTNT showed a negative correlation with the sciatic nerve’s FA (r = −0.52, P < 0.001), with a closer correlation in DN patients (r = −0.66, P < 0.001). hsTNT further correlated positively with the neuropathy disability score (r = 0.39, P = 0.005). Negative correlations were found with sural nerve conduction velocities (NCVs) (r = −0.65, P < 0.001) and tibial NCVs (r = −0.44, P = 0.002) and amplitudes (r = −0.53, P < 0.001). This study is the first to show that hsTNT is a potential indicator for structural nerve damage in T2D. Our results indirectly support the hypothesis that microangiopathy contributes to structural nerve damage in T2D.

中文翻译：

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肌钙蛋白 T 与 2 型糖尿病的结构性神经损伤平行 一项使用磁共振神经成像的横断面研究

临床研究表明，周围神经微循环的变化可能导致糖尿病性多发性神经病 (DN) 的神经损伤。最近显示高灵敏度肌钙蛋白 T (hsTNT) 检测可为 2 型糖尿病 (T2D) 的心脏和外周微血管病变提供预测值。本研究调查了 3 特斯拉 (3T) 磁共振神经成像 (MRN) 中坐骨神经结构损伤与 T2D 患者 hsTNT 和 N 端脑钠肽前体血清水平的关联。51 名 T2D 患者（23 名没有 DN，28 名有 DN）和 10 名没有糖尿病的对照受试者在 3T 时进行了 MRN。坐骨神经的各向异性分数 (FA) 是结构神经完整性的标志，与临床、电生理和血清学数据相关。在 T2D 患者中，hsTNT 与坐骨神经的 FA 呈负相关（r = -0.52，P < 0.001），与 DN 患者的相关性更密切（r = -0.66，P < 0.001）。hsTNT 进一步与神经病变残疾评分呈正相关（r = 0.39，P = 0.005）。发现与腓肠神经传导速度 (NCV) (r = -0.65, P < 0.001) 和胫骨 NCV (r = -0.44, P = 0.002) 和振幅 (r = -0.53, P < 0.001) 呈负相关。这项研究首次表明 hsTNT 是 T2D 结构性神经损伤的潜在指标。我们的结果间接支持了微血管病导致 T2D 结构性神经损伤的假设。hsTNT 进一步与神经病变残疾评分呈正相关（r = 0.39，P = 0.005）。发现与腓肠神经传导速度 (NCV) (r = -0.65, P < 0.001) 和胫骨 NCV (r = -0.44, P = 0.002) 和振幅 (r = -0.53, P < 0.001) 呈负相关。这项研究首次表明 hsTNT 是 T2D 结构性神经损伤的潜在指标。我们的结果间接支持了微血管病导致 T2D 结构性神经损伤的假设。hsTNT 进一步与神经病变残疾评分呈正相关（r = 0.39，P = 0.005）。发现与腓肠神经传导速度 (NCV) (r = -0.65, P < 0.001) 和胫骨 NCV (r = -0.44, P = 0.002) 和振幅 (r = -0.53, P < 0.001) 呈负相关。这项研究首次表明 hsTNT 是 T2D 结构性神经损伤的潜在指标。我们的结果间接支持了微血管病导致 T2D 结构性神经损伤的假设。