title: Microalbuminuria: frequency and clinical significance in hospital patients.
abstract: We investigated the frequency and the clinical significance of microalbuminuria (UA) in 312 hospital patients suspected of renal disorders, but with normal or borderline levels of urinary total protein (UTP). Approximately one-third of the patients with urinary total protein < 300 mg/g creatinine had microalbuminuria, above the reference interval (< 32 mg/g creatinine). In contrast, only 10% of the patients with elevated total urinary protein above the reference interval (> 200 mg/g creatinine) did not have microalbuminuria. About half of the patients with elevated UA had diabetes mellitus, hypertension, an immune-related disorder, or had undergone a recent renal transplant. About half of the patients with borderline elevated UTP (100 to 300 mg/g creatinine) did not have any obvious renal problem. These data demonstrate that: 1) microalbuminuria occurs very commonly in hospital patients, 2) it is a more sensitive and specific assay for the early detection of many renal disorders compared to urinary total protein, especially when the latter test is normal or borderline elevated; and 3) a thorough patient history is required for interpretation of microalbuminuria in diabetes to eliminate other complicating factors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC.
authors.forename: W D
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: McDearmon
authors.forename: Z K
authors.initials: ZK
authors.lastname: Shihabi
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Key
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Konen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000419:Albuminuria / Q000209:etiology*; D003404:Creatinine / Q000652:urine; D006801:Humans; D007674:Kidney Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000652:urine; D008875:Middle Aged; D011507:Proteinuria / Q000209:etiology; D011897:Random Allocation; D012016:Reference Values
chemical_list: D003404:Creatinine