Introduction: Visfatin is a newly discovered adipokine. Previous studies showed a direct relationship between plasma visfatin levels and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The current study was conducted to investigate the effect of aerobic exercise on plasma visfatin in type 2 diabetic men treated with metformin. Material and Methods: Thirty-six men with type 2 diabetes who consumed metformin (age 46/08 ± 3/08 years, BMI 30/1± 2/32 kg/m2 , mean ± SD) volunteered to participate in this study. Subjects were randomly assigned in 2 groups. 18 subjects were in the aerobic exercise group (3 days per week, 35 to 50 minutes per day, 40-55% heart rate reserve) and 18 subjects in the control group. Fasting Plasma visfatin, insulin and glucose concentrations were measured before and after 8 weeks exercise in patients with T2DM and data was analyzed using Repeated Measures (ANOVA) at a Significance level of (P<0.05). Results: The results showed that plasma visfatin levels, insulin, glucose, BMI, WHR and body fat percentage significantly decreased in aerobic exercise group compared with control group (p<0.05). The peak rate of oxygen consumption (vo2peak) significantly increased in aerobic exercise group compared to control group (p<0.05). Discussion and Conclusion: The present study showed decrease of plasma visfatin induced by aerobic exercise is most likely the result of improving glycemic control in patients with T2DM treated with metformin.
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