Change in urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio and clinical outcomes in patients with chronic kidney disease and type 2 diabetes
BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care, 2025
Introduction
This study aims to investigate the association between change in urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) and clinical outcomes in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and type 2 diabetes.
Research design and methods
Adult patients with elevated UACR (≥30 mg/g in initial testing) after the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes and CKD were identified from the Optum electronic health records database (01/2007-09/2021). UACR change from initial to last test (6-24 months) was categorized as >30% decrease, stable (-30% to 30%), or >30% increase. Risk of all-cause mortality, composite cardiovascular (CV) outcome (CV death, myocardial infarction, stroke, and hospitalization for heart failure), and CKD progression (≥40% decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate or kidney failure) were estimated with Cox proportional hazard models adjusted for baseline characteristics.
Results
Compared with patients with a stable UACR (n=35 117), those with a >30% UACR decrease (n=89 562) had lower risk of all-cause mortality (adjusted HR (aHR)=0.93, 95% CI 0.90 to 0.96), composite CV outcomes (aHR=0.93, 95% CI 0.90 to 0.95), and CKD progression (aHR=0.84, 95% CI 0.81 to 0.86) (all p<0.001), and patients with a >30% UACR increase (n=35 703) had higher risk of each endpoint (aHR=1.24, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.28; aHR=1.24, 95% CI 1.20 to 1.28; and aHR=1.41, 95% CI 1.36 to 1.46, respectively; all p<0.001).
Conclusions
In patients with CKD and type 2 diabetes, a >30% UACR decrease was associated with lower risk of mortality, CV events, and CKD progression, whereas a >30% UACR increase was associated with higher risk of these clinical outcomes. These findings highlight the importance of albuminuria monitoring and potential clinical benefits of targeted UACR reductions in this population.
Authors
Tangri N, Singh R, Chen Y, Betts KA, Farag YM, Beeman S, Du Y, Kong SX, Williamson T, Li Q, Wu A, Sundar M, Rabideau B, Pantalone KM