Prevalence of albuminuria and associated cardiovascular risk factors: a community cohort in Namwon City, Korea.
OBJECTIVE
To document the prevalence of albuminuria and determine its relationship to risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) among Korean adults.


METHODS
We performed a cross-sectional study of adults aged 45-74 years from Namwon City, South Korea. Albuminuria was defined as a urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR)≥30mg/g. The values of UACR were categorized into 5 groups: <10, 10-19, 20-29, 30-299, and ≥300mg/g. Risk factors for CVD and the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were analyzed for an association with UACR values.


RESULTS
Data were obtained from 10,534 participants (4140 men and 6394 women). Albuminuria was more prevalent among women than men (27.3% versus 22.7%, respectively, p<0.001), and it was also more prevalent among older participants (p<0.001). The prevalence of albuminuria was 36.3% among participants with hypertension or type 2 diabetes, and it was 16.6% among participants without these conditions. The UACR was positively associated with CVD risk factors, including blood pressure, obesity indexes, total cholesterol, and the eGFR.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of albuminuria is high in the general population in Korea, even among Koreans without CVD risk factors. Lower UACR values are associated with reduced CVD risk factors.
Department of Preventive Medicine, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, South Korea.
Sun-Seog
SS
Kweon
Min-Ho
MH
Shin
Jin-Su
JS
Choi
Hae-Sung
HS
Nam
Young-Hoon
YH
Lee
Kyeong-Soo
KS
Park
Jun-Young
JY
Lee
Seul-Ki
SK
Jeong
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000419:Albuminuria / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D005919:Glomerular Filtration Rate; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors