ABSTRACT
In order to evaluate the relationship between urinary albumin excretion, arterial blood pressure and diabetic retinopathy in insulin dependent diabetics we examined 55 patients without clinical proteinuria and whose disease had started before the age of 30. Each patient was asked to collect at least one overnight timed urine sample for albumin analysis by an ELISA method. Normoalbuminuria was defined as urinary albumin excretion (UAE) of < 20 mug/min (n = 32) and microalbuminuria as 21-200 mug/min (n = 23). Patients with microalbuminuria showed higher levels of blood pressure, serum creatinine and glicosylated haemoglobin as compared to normoalbuminuric patients. Significant correlation was observed between diastolic blood pressure and UAE (r = 0.52; p < O.001).Preproliferative and proliferative diabetic retinopathy was detected in 9 patients (l6.4 per cent). All of them had diabetes for more than 10 years, elevated UAE and diastolic blood pressure equal or higher than 85 mmHg. In our population of insulin dependent diabetics we found a high prevalence of microalbuminuria which is considered to be predictive of the latter development of diabetic nephropathy. Microalbuminuria is associated with elevated blood pressure and diabetic retinal lesions. We conclude that urinary albumin excretion should be monitored in patients with insulin dependent diabetes to detect those who should be considered at risk of developing nephropathy and retinopathy.