Ageing impairs insulin-mediated vasodilatation but not forearm glucose uptake

Background It is unclear if insulin‐mediated vasodilatation is altered by ageing and if this affects insulin‐mediated glucose uptake. Material and methods A 2‐h euglycaemic hyperinsulinaemic clamp (56 mU m−2 min−1) was performed in 10 healthy, nonobese elderly men (70–75 years) and 13 young men (23–28 years). Forearm blood flow (FBF) was measured by venous occlusion plethysmography and forearm glucose uptake was calculated by arterial and venous serum glucose determinations in the forearm. Results Insulin induced an increase in FBF in the younger men (from 3·9 ± 1·1 SD to 5·9 ± 2·2 mL min−1 100 −1mL tissue, P