Abstract :
Background: Microalbuminuria is a reversible stage of renal dysfunction and its detection allows early intervention and treatment of diabetic nephropathy. Therefore, a more reliable biomarker is required to diagnose early, reversible stage of renal dysfunction.
Aim: To evaluate the utility of urinary transferrin (UTRANS) as an early predictive marker in type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
Settings and Design: This cross-sectional study included 40 normoalbuminuric and 20 microalbuminuric T2DM patients and 20 clinically healthy controls.
Materials and Methods: All baseline characteristics such as glucose (fasting and postprandial), serum creatinine, HbA1c, urinary albumin, creatinine, and UTRANS were estimated.
Statistical Analyses: SPSS software version 20, R studio 3.6.2. Shapiro test, Chi-square test, Analysis of variance, Kruskal Wallis, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC).
Results: Urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio and UTRANS showed a significant difference among normoalbuminuric and microalbuminuric T2DM patients compared to controls (P = 0.000). UTRANS and TRANS/creatinine ratio positively correlated in normoalbuminuric, macroalbuminuric and control groups (P < 0>0.9), indicating UTRANS was able to differentiate between healthy controls, normoalbuminuric, and microalbuminuric T2DM subjects.
Conclusion: UTRANS may act as a potential biomarker that can be used as an early screening marker for renal injury, even before progression to the stage of microalbuminuria.
Keyword :
Type 2 diabetes mellitus, Diabetic nephropathies, Albuminuria, Transferrin, Kidney tubules.