title: C-reactive protein and microalbuminuria in a multi-ethnic Asian population.
abstract: C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker for inflammation, has been recently associated with early kidney damage. We examined the association between CRP and micro/macroalbuminuria in a multi-ethnic Asian population using data from two population-based studies in Singapore. Methods. We studied 5127 individuals, who participated in two separate, cross-sectional studies, the Singapore Prospective Study Program [SP2]/Singapore Cardiovascular Cohort Study 2 (SCCS2), involving 4233 participants of Chinese, Malay and Indian ethnicity, aged 24-95 years in Singapore, and the Singapore Malay Eye Study (SiMES), involving 894 participants of Malay ethnicity, aged 40-80 years. Micro/macroalbuminuria was defined as urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio of > or =17 mg/g for men and > or =25 g/g for women. CRP was analyzed as a continuous variable and as categories (<1, 1-3, >3 mg/L). Results. The prevalence of micro/macroalbuminuria in the whole population was 21.1%. The prevalence increased with increasing categories of CRP. Compared with persons with CRP concentrations <1 mg/L, the multivariable odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval [CI]) was 1.33 (1.11-1.60) in persons with CRP concentrations 1-3 mg/L and 1.60 (1.30-1.96) in persons with CRP concentrations >3 mg/L; P trend <0.0001. In continuous analysis, each unit increase in log CRP was associated with an OR (95% CI) of 1.20 (1.11-1.28) of having micro/macroalbuminuria (P < 0.0001). This association was independent of potential confounders and was consistent across the two study cohorts with similar effect estimates (OR = 1.6) for micro/macroalbuminuria. Conclusions. Elevated CRP levels are associated with micro/macroalbuminuria independent of diabetes, hypertension and other potential confounders. This suggests that inflammation may play a role in early kidney damage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore. charumathi.s@nus.edu.sg
authors.forename: Charumathi
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sabanayagam
authors.forename: Jeannette
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Anoop
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shankar
authors.forename: Su Chi
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Tien Y
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: E Shyong
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Tai
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000419:Albuminuria / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001208:Asia / Q000453:epidemiology; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D002097:C-Reactive Protein