We wished to investigate the effects of 8 weeks of low volume high intensity interval training (HIIT) on endothelial function of popliteal artery and circulating cell adhesion molecules in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients and matched controls (CON).
Methods: Over 8 weeks, non-active T2D patients and CONs cycled three times per week (10 × 60 sec HIIT). Pre- and post-HIIT measurements of endothelial function were conducted by applying flow-mediated dilation (FMD) along with taking venous blood samples.
Results: Baseline diameter of popliteal artery increased significantly from an average of 5.53 mm to 5.97 mm (∼8%) in the CON-group (p = 0.006) and 5.32 mm to 5.61 mm (∼6%) in the T2D-group (p = 0.009). Peak diameter increased significantly from 5.82 mm to 6.36 mm (∼9%) in the CON-group (p = 0.001) and 5.57 mm to 5.93 mm (∼7%) in the T2D-group (p = 0.004). FMD% increased significantly from 5.12% to 6.58% in the CON-group (p = 0.004) and 4.84% to 5.66% in the T2D-group: (p = 0.045). The shear rate reduced significantly in both groups (CON-group: p = 0.04; T2D-group: p = 0.002). Circulating cell adhesion molecules remained unchanged (p > 0.05).
Conclusion: HIIT induced an improvement of endothelium-dependent FMD and significant outwards artery modelling. No changes in circulating cell adhesion molecules were observed.
Keywords: Cell adhesion molecules; Type 2 diabetes; flow mediated dilation; high intensity interval training.