Platelet reactivity in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a comparative analysis with survivors of myocardial infarction and the role of glycaemic control.

Aims: Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus exhibit considerable platelet dysfunction, though this is poorly characterized in patients with diabetes taking aspirin for the primary prevention of cardiovascular events. We sought to compare platelet function in this patient population with that of a high-risk group of non-diabetic subjects with a history of previous myocardial infarction (MI), and to assess whether glycaemic control impacts on platelet function.Methods: Platelet aggregation was measured in response to incremental concentrations of five platelet agonists using light transmission aggregometry. All patients were taking aspirin, and aspirin insensitivity was defined as ≥20% arachidonic acid (AA) mediated aggregation. Patients with diabetes were divided according to glycaemic control (HbA1c): optimal ≤6.5, good 6.6–7.4 and suboptimal ≥7.5%.Results: In total, 85 patients with type 2 diabetes and 35 non-diabetic patients with previous MI were recruited. Compared to MI patients, diabetes patients h...