Increased incidence of cytomegalovirus but not Chlamydia pneumoniae in atherosclerotic lesions of arteries of lower extremities from patients with diabetes mellitus undergoing amputation.

AIMS: To evaluate the association between cytomegalovirus (CMV) or Chlamydia pneumoniae infection and the development of accelerated atherosclerotic lesions in patients with diabetes who are known to have an impaired immune response to infection and a high incidence of atherosclerosis.

METHODS

Two hundred arterial samples from patients with diabetes who had undergone surgical amputation for gangrenous lower limbs were selected to assess the presence of CMV or C pneumoniae nucleic acid by means of the polymerase chain reaction.

RESULTS

CMV nucleic acid sequences were detected in 64 of 200 (32%) samples and C pneumoniae in seven of 200 (3.5%) arterial samples with severe atherosclerosis. Of those positive for C pneumoniae, six were also positive for CMV.

CONCLUSION

The significantly higher incidence of CMV nucleic acid sequences in the arterial samples of patients with diabetes supports the hypothesis that this organism is involved in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis in patients with diabetic mellitus. It is possible that the potential role of different infectious agents in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis might rely on their biological properties and their infectivity in hosts with varying immunological status.