Early MRI Detection of Myocardial Deterioration as a Preventive, Disease Staging, and Prognostic Biomarker in Insulin Resistance

Cardiac fibrosis has been linked to adverse outcomes in non-ischemic cardiomyopathy. Fibrosis is also detectable in diabetic patients, but does not appear to closely track with insulin sensitivity. Hence, fibrosis may be an independent risk factor for adverse outcomes in IR and diabetic patients. As a result, a critical need exists to develop a non-invasive tool to identify and treat the highest-risk patients. Early detection of cardiac fibrosis and other CMR- detectable abnormalities in IR patients may help to 'stage' a patient's disease process and future risk of events, ultimately leading to an adjustment in the aggressiveness of their medical management and long-term monitoring accordingly. This project is aimed at reducing the mortality and morbidity associated with insulin resistance and diabetes, and the investigators believe this project could have a transformative impact on long-term diabetic care and shed new light upon the biology of diffuse cardiac fibrosis in insulin resistance and diabetes and its role in shaping the long-term cardiovascular risk for these patients.