Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Microalbuminuria was originally established as a predictor of renal failure and an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease in patients with diabetes mellitus as well as in general population. The aim of our study is to assess the relationship between microalbuminuria and the other risk factors in diabetics and their prevalence.

Methods: Sixty five patients, 22 men and 43 women with mean age 58.6±10.09, with type 2 diabetes, were hospitalized in the Department of Internal Medicine in the University Hospital Center ‘Mother Teresa’ in Tirana, Albania, between March 2007 and February 2008. These patients with a mean duration of diabetes 6.09±5.41 were divided in two groups: with (Group A: 24 patients) and without (Group B: 41 patients) microalbuminuria and each group was evaluated for left ventricular mass index (LVMI), body mass index (BMI), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C), lipid profile and intima media thickness (IMT).

Results: The prevalence of microalbuminuria in our study was 32.3%. The prevalence of microalbuminuria in males was 37.5 and in females 62.5%. The microalbuminuric patients were older (59.71±9.87 vs 57.07±10.32) and had a longer duration of diabetes (7.74±5.74 vs 4.45±5.08) compared with normoalbuminuric patients (P=0.01). The Group A had significantly higher LVMI compared with Group B (P=0.02). The prevalence of obesity (BMI >30 kg/m²) in our sample was 44.6%. In Group A the mean BMI (30.13±4.98) was significantly higher compared with Group B (28.00±3.72, P=0.04). Diabetic retinopathy was more frequent in Group A compared with Group B (33.3 vs 14.6%, P=0.05). The mean value of IMT was higher in Group A compared with Group B (1.28±0.35 vs 1.09±0.28, P=0.03)

Conclusion: In patients with type 2 diabetes and microalbuminuria LVMI, IMT, BMI, duration of diabetes was significantly higher compared with patients with type 2 diabetes and normoalbuminuria.