Serum Galectin-3 and Subsequent Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Subjects With Childhood-Onset Type 1 Diabetes: A Cohort Study

OBJECTIVE To study whether serum galectin-3 and other biomarkers of inflammation predict coronary heart disease (CHD) in subjects with long-standing childhood-onset type 1 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A population-based nationwide cohort of 299 subjects with type 1 diabetes diagnosed in Norway at RESULTS Of 295 subjects, 40 (13.6%) had a documented CHD event during a mean follow-up of 14.4 years (range 0.5–16). IL-6 (aHR 1.32 [95% CI 1.07–1.63]), galectin-3 (aHR 1.44 [95% CI 1.09–1.80]), and TIMP-1 (aHR 1.37 [95% CI 1.04–1.81]) were significant predictors of CHD after adjustment for conventional risk factors. CONCLUSIONS Galectin-3 was significantly associated with future CHD in subjects with type 1 diabetes, and if the results are replicated in larger studies, it may aid in prediction together with conventional risk factors for CHD.