Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Mellitus and Vitamin A Metabolism

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic, systemic, metabolic disease defined by hyperglycemia and characterized by alterations in the metabolism of carbohydrate, protein, and lipid. The cumulative effects of these metabolic derangements lead to cell damage, circulatory changes, and eventually to cardiovascular disorders, including increased plasma lipoproteins, atherosclerosis, hypertension, and cardiomyopathy. Other clinical consequences of diabetes include nephropathy, neuropathy, and retinopathy. The latter can reach a proliferative phase associated with neovascularization of retinal vessels, vitreous hemorrhage and retinal detachment; this, in fact, is the leading cause of visual impairment and blindness in adults. Visual defects are also known to be a clinical consequence of vitamin A deficiency. Evidence to date point to the fact that diabetes is associated with an impaired metabolic availability of the vitamin. This paper delineates the link between insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) (Type I) and the biochemical evidence of vitamin A deficiency.