RESUMO
Resumen Introducción: Durante muchos años el ácido úrico se ha considerado como un producto metabólico inerte del metabolismo de las purinas, sin embargo, ha sido recientemente asociado a una serie de estados de enfermedad crónica. No hay hallazgos concluyentes disponibles en la actualidad para tomar una conducta activa clara respecto al tratamiento de ácido úrico sérico, y cuál sería su objetivo terapéutico. Material y métodos: Debido a esta controversia, se decidió llevar a cabo una encuesta para evaluar cuáles son las decisiones que se toman en este contexto, en el ámbito médico de la Argentina. Se consultó en qué pacientes se evaluaba en forma rutinaria el ácido úrico sérico, resultando en un 53.2% de todos los pacientes, sin diferenciar patologías, y un 11.5% refirió que no lo realiza rutinariamente. Con respecto al tratamiento sólo refirieron tratarlo con enfermedad renal un 62.5%; con diabetes 61.7%; con síndrome metabólico 60.4%; con enfermedad cardiovascular un 50.3%; con gota, cálculos renales o dolor articular, un 91.3%, 74% y 36.1% respectivamente. Resultados: Los datos de la encuesta confirman la falta de evidencia en el criterio para la selección de pacientes, a los fines de evaluar los niveles de ácido úrico sérico y su tratamiento. Conclusiones: De esta forma, se concluye que prima la necesidad de realizar estudios prospectivos y randomizados de las patologías con alta incidencia de uricemia elevada, para poder determinar normativas que orienten una conducta a los especialistas según los resultados obtenidos, y que dicha decisión no esté basada solo en la opinión de los expertos.
Abstract Introduction: For many years, uric acid was considered to be an inert product of purine metabolism; however, it has recently been associated with a number of chronic diseases. Nowadays, there are no conclusive findings available regarding a clear action plan to treat serum uric acid or which specific therapeutic goals it would have. Methods: Given this controversy, a survey was conducted in order to evaluate which decisions are taken regarding this situation within the Argentinian medical community. The question was in which cases serum uric acid was routinely assessed and the result was 53.2% no matter the pathology; 11,5% of physicians did not assess it routinely. Regarding its treatment, 62.5% of them reported to have treated it as part of kidney disease; 61.7 % as part of diabetes; 60.4% as part of metabolic syndrome; 50.3% as part of cardiovascular disease; 91.3 % as part of gout; 74% as part of renal stones, and 36.1% as part of joint pain. Results: The data collected by means of the survey show a lack of evidence for establishing the patient selection criteria when evaluating levels of serum uric acid and its treatment. Conclusions: Therefore, it is concluded that it is necessary to conduct prospective and randomized studies of conditions with a high incidence of elevated uricemia in order to develop guidelines for specialists according to results; this decision should not be based on experts' opinion alone.
RESUMO
Forty-nine normoalbuminuric diabetic patients were studied: 22 males and 27 females, in whom urinary heparan sulphate (HS), albuminuria, creatininemia, creatininuria, creatinine clearance, HbA1c and arterial pressure (AP) were determined. Two groups were discerned: group 1, Type 1 DM, diabetic cases (n = 16); and group 2, Type 2 DM diabetic cases (n = 33). Patients were compared with 24 healthy controls: 12 men and 12 women, who showed a mean value + SD of 0.36 + 0.18 mg/24 h HS with significant differences between males and females (0.43 + 0.15 versus 0.28 + 0.17, respectively; p = 0.02). The total population of diabetic cases rendered a mean of 0.68 + 0.44 and comparison with controls proved highly significant (p < 0.001). Globally, male patients had a mean of 0.82 + 0.48 and females 0.54 + 0.35, with p < 0.02. Group 1 and 2 values of HS were not significantly different. HS levels falled to correlate either with age, body mass index (BM), time since onset of diabetes, albuminuria, creatininemia, creatininuria, creatinine clearance, HbA1c or arterial hypertension. To conclude: both normal and diabetic males eliminate a greater quantity of HS than females. Normoalbuminuric diabetic patients of both types eliminate a greater quantity of HS regardiess of arterial pressure and time since onset of diabetes.