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Biomedicines
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Connections Between Diabetes Mellitus, Other Metabolic and Endocrine Dysfunctions and...
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Connections Between Diabetes Mellitus, Other Metabolic and Endocrine Dysfunctions and Cardiovascular Pathologies—Third Edition

A special issue of Biomedicines (ISSN 2227-9059). This special issue belongs to the section "Endocrinology and Metabolism Research".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 1455

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Dragos Cozma

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Cardiology, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 2 Eftimie Murgu Square, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
2. Research Center of the Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases Timisoara, 13A Gheorghe Adam Street, 300310 Timisoara, Romania
Interests: pacing; defibrillators; electrophysiology; echocardiography; heart failure; clinical cardiology; ECG
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Cristina Tudoran

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department VII, Internal Medicine II, Discipline of Cardiology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babes" Timisoara, E. Murgu Square, Nr. 2, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
2. County Emergency Hospital "Pius Brinzeu", L. Rebreanu, Nr. 156, 300723 Timisoara, Romania
3. Center of Molecular Research in Nephrology and Vascular Disease, Faculty of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babes" Timisoara, E. Murgu Square, Nr. 2, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
Interests: pulmonary hypertension; heart failure; heart rate variability; myocarditis; pericarditis; COVID-19; post-acute COVID-19 syndrome
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Claudiu Stoicescu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor Assistant
Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Carol Davila, Bucharest, Romania
Interests: cardiovascular medicine; ardiomyopathies

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Although studies have confirmed the association of diabetes mellitus with other metabolic dysfunctions, such as metabolic syndrome and obesity, and with cardiovascular pathologies, physicians and researchers should not underestimate the considerable impact of other endocrine dysfunctions, including thyroid disorders and other endocrine diseases, on the cardiovascular risk profile of a patient. New developments in genetics, pathophysiology, medical equipment, bioengineering, pharmacology and statistics reveal new horizons for the diagnosis and management of patients with metabolic and endocrine dysfunctions (for example, they allow for early detection of cardiovascular alterations even under subclinical status), thus preventing their evolution to symptomatic disease.

New diagnostic/therapeutic methods and protocols must be developed to facilitate the early diagnosis and assessment of risk profiles, pre-existing cardiovascular pathologies and short- and long-term outcomes in diabetic patients, as well as in those with other metabolic and endocrine dysfunctions.

This Special Issue welcomes original articles and reviews that demonstrate groundbreaking research regarding the association between diabetes mellitus and/or other endocrine and metabolic dysfunctions and cardiovascular pathologies.

Dr. Dragos Cozma
Dr. Cristina Tudoran
Guest Editors

Dr. Claudiu Stoicescu
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomedicines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

 

Keywords

  • diabetes mellitus
  • insulin resistance
  • metabolic syndrome
  • obesity thyroid
  • dysfunction hormonal
  • alterations endothelial
  • dysfunction coronary
  • artery disease
  • hypertension peripheric
  • arterial disease

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1020 KB  
Article
Vitamin D Status and Reproductive Hormonal Profiles in Early Versus Physiological Menopause: A Comparative Observational Study
by Anamaria Ardelean, Cristian Furău, Oana Toduț, Nicoleta Mirica, Florina Buleu, Simona Ioana Sipos, Ion Petre, Izabella Petre, Tiberiu Buleu, Mircea Iurciuc, Oana Suciu and Roxana Furău
Biomedicines 2026, 14(6), 1283; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines14061283 - 4 Jun 2026
Viewed by 327
Abstract
Background: An early menopause (by definition, menopause that occurs at a woman’s age 40 through 45) is often associated with certain changes in the body that can result in risks for health-related conditions, an extended period later. Thus, scientists have begun examining how [...] Read more.
Background: An early menopause (by definition, menopause that occurs at a woman’s age 40 through 45) is often associated with certain changes in the body that can result in risks for health-related conditions, an extended period later. Thus, scientists have begun examining how vitamin D has been suggested to be associated with endocrine function regulating both hormones and reproductive function during this time. However, it is not yet clear as to whether or not vitamin D provides any benefit to women who have experienced an early menopause. Material and Methods: The data was collected from 272 women in this retrospective, observational study at The County Hospital, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Arad. The method of grouping the sample included two stratifications into early and physiological menopause categories based on amenorrhoea for a minimum of 12 consecutive months. 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels were classified into three categories: deficiency (<20 ng/mL), insufficiency (21–29 ng/mL), or adequacy (≥30 ng/mL). Estradiol, progesterone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH) hormone parameters were measured using standard immunoassays. The analysis employed correlation and regression to evaluate potential relationships between 25(OH)D levels and hormone parameters. Results: A significant proportion of the study group had a vitamin D deficiency. This was supported by the fact that only 24.27% of women were identified as having adequate levels of vitamin D, while the rest (62.03%) did not. Women in the early menopause group had a statistically significant negative relationship between estradiol and FSH (i.e., r = −0.29, p = 0.0016), as well as between progesterone and LH (i.e., r = −0.207, p = 0.026). There was not a statistically significant relationship between total sample vitamin D and estradiol (i.e., r = −0.038, p = 0.686) nor between vitamin D and progesterone (i.e., r = 0.031, p = 0.744). Women with vitamin D blood levels of 30 ng/mL or more showed a strong negative relationship between vitamin D and estradiol (r = −0.780; p = 0.0016) and a moderate positive relationship with progesterone (r = 0.534; p = 0.0104). However, these relationships were inconsistent in other groups. All group comparative analyses showed that women in the early menopause group had much lower estradiol levels than those in the physiological menopause group, regardless of whether they were classified based on their vitamin D levels (p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Women experiencing early or physiological menopause are at risk of having low vitamin D levels. However, our study results do not show a consistent relationship between serum 25(OH)D concentrations and serum estradiol or progesterone concentrations among the study population, suggesting that vitamin D is not a major factor influencing hormonal changes during menopause. These findings were inconsistent across analyses and should be interpreted cautiously. Overall, the results do not support a significant association between serum 25(OH)D concentrations and reproductive hormone levels in our study population. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Connections Between Diabetes Mellitus, Other Metabolic and Endocrine Dysfunctions and Cardiovascular Pathologies—Third Edition)
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15 pages, 1175 KB  
Article
Analysis of Pericoronary Adipose Tissue Attenuation in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus on Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors and Angiotensin Receptor Blockers: A Propensity-Score-Matched Observational Study
by Bryan Wu, Hanyi Joh, Koen Nieman and Ryan Sandoval
Biomedicines 2026, 14(6), 1268; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines14061268 - 2 Jun 2026
Viewed by 264
Abstract
Background: In patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE-Is) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are first-line antihypertensive treatments with important cardiovascular benefits, but their impacts on coronary-specific inflammation are unknown. Pericoronary adipose tissue (PCAT) attenuation, as assessed by coronary [...] Read more.
Background: In patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE-Is) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are first-line antihypertensive treatments with important cardiovascular benefits, but their impacts on coronary-specific inflammation are unknown. Pericoronary adipose tissue (PCAT) attenuation, as assessed by coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA), serves as a specific biomarker for coronary inflammation. Here, we aim to assess whether treatment with ACE-I or ARB is correlated with lower PCAT attenuation. Methods: In this retrospective observational study, we analyzed 223 patients with T2DM and coronary atherosclerosis who underwent CCTA from 1 January 2017 to 1 September 2024 at our institution. PCAT attenuation was measured in the proximal right coronary artery. Propensity score matching and multivariate linear regression analyses were performed for comparisons. Results: Of the 223 patients (mean age of 64.9 ± 8.8 years, 69.1% male), 122 patients were on ACE-I or ARB (ACE-I/ARB). ACE-I/ARB users had similar PCAT attenuation as their counterparts after propensity score matching (−72.1 ± 7.5 and −71.7 ± 8.1 HU, respectively; p = 0.722). Subgroup analysis in patients with glomerular filtration rate (GFR) < 90 mL/min revealed lower PCAT attenuation in ACE-I/ARB users (−74.8 ± 6.6 vs. −71.4 ± 7.1 HU; p = 0.038), with a significant interaction between these two factors in the multivariate analysis (p = 0.047). Other antihypertensive treatments (beta blockers, dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers, and thiazides) were not linked with lower coronary inflammation. Conclusions: In T2DM patients with coronary atherosclerosis, we did not find an association between ACE-I/ARB treatment and lower coronary inflammation as defined by PCAT attenuation, although such a relationship may exist in those with reduced GFRs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Connections Between Diabetes Mellitus, Other Metabolic and Endocrine Dysfunctions and Cardiovascular Pathologies—Third Edition)
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Review

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39 pages, 3766 KB  
Review
Perinatal Endocrine–Cardiac Axis: A Narrative Review of Long-Term Cardiovascular Risks in Women with Gestational Diabetes, Hypertensive Disorders, and Thyroid Dysfunction
by Ying Xie, Beiyan Chen, Shuang Gao, Jianuo Li, Bin Chen and Jieru Han
Biomedicines 2026, 14(6), 1322; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines14061322 - 10 Jun 2026
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Abstract
Purpose: To review the long-term cardiovascular risks associated with three common perinatal endocrine disorders—gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), and thyroid dysfunction (including postpartum thyroiditis)—and to identify opportunities for early risk stratification and prevention. Materials and Methods: We [...] Read more.
Purpose: To review the long-term cardiovascular risks associated with three common perinatal endocrine disorders—gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), and thyroid dysfunction (including postpartum thyroiditis)—and to identify opportunities for early risk stratification and prevention. Materials and Methods: We conducted a structured literature search of PubMed and Web of Science for peer-reviewed articles published between January 2000 and December 2025. Search terms included combinations related to GDM, HDP, thyroid dysfunction, and cardiovascular disease (CVD). We prioritized prospective cohort studies, meta-analyses, systematic reviews, and major clinical guidelines. Key findings were synthesized thematically. Results: GDM is associated with a 1.6- to 2-fold increased risk of future CVD, HDP with a 1.8-fold increase, and subclinical hypothyroidism with a two-fold increase. These risks persist for decades, are independent of traditional risk factors, and are amplified by obesity, recurrence, and social determinants of health. Converging pathophysiological mechanisms include persistent insulin resistance, chronic low-grade inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, autonomic dysregulation, epigenetic modifications, and subclinical myocardial remodeling. The placenta serves as a central endocrine–cardiovascular interface, releasing anti-angiogenic factors, pro-inflammatory cytokines, and exosomal microRNAs. Despite this evidence, postpartum screening uptake remains below 50%, care is fragmented, and pregnancy history is not incorporated into CVD risk calculators. Conclusion: A life-course approach integrating structured postpartum screening (6–12 weeks and annually), lifestyle interventions, targeted pharmacotherapy, and multidisciplinary cardio-obstetrics programs is urgently needed to reduce the global burden of premature heart disease, stroke, and heart failure in women. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Connections Between Diabetes Mellitus, Other Metabolic and Endocrine Dysfunctions and Cardiovascular Pathologies—Third Edition)
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