Type 2 diabetes mellitus as inflammatory disease

Inflammation is defined as a cascade of phenomena induced in response to different pathological stimuli. This physiological occurrence that allows the restoration of homeostasis may also cause different diseases in various pathological conditions. Inflammatory process seems to play an important role in the development of diabetes and its late complications. Both genetic and environmental factors, such as diet, physical inactivity, smoking and stress are responsible for the activation and intensity of chronic inflammation. Epidemiological, clinical and experimental studies have indicated an association of low-grade inflammation with type 2 diabetes. Moreover, the role of inflammation in pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes and vascular complications was confirmed by intervention studies. It has been shown that loss of weight, increase in physical activity, treatment with converting enzyme inhibitors, statins, high doses of aspirin and glitazones reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes and its vascular complications partially via anti-inflammatory mechanism. The hypothesis that type 2 diabetes is an inflammatory disease opens new clinical perspectives for diagnosis and treatment, but still needs to be more explored.