Incidence of Microalbuminuria and Its Influencing Factors among Patients with Type 2 Diabetes at Klinik Kesihatan Seremban, Malaysia, from 2000 until 2005

Objective: The first sign of diabetic nephropathy is most often microalbuminuria. The objective of this study was to determine factors influencing the time-to-microalbuminuria among type 2 diabetic patients under follow-up at Seremban Health Clinic, Malaysia. Design: A survival analysis study was conducted to examine the incidence and time-to-event of microalbuminuria among type 2 diabetic patients diagnosed in 2000 and 2001 using clinic-held records. Materials and Methods: Survival free-from-microalbuminuria was measured from the date of diagnosis of diabetes, until the subject develops microalbuminuria, leaves the study or remains microalbuminuria-free at the end of study on 31 August 2005. Data was obtained from clinic-held records and the factors studied included demographic factors and several clinical factors. Results: At the end of the study period, 41.2% subjects developed microalbuminuria. Cox regression showed several influencing factors i.e. ethnic group, presence of co-morbidities of cardiovascular diseases other than hypertension, body weight, HbA(1c) level and serum creatinine level. There is also a strong correlation between microalbuminuria and diabetes related changes on fundus examination. Conclusion: This study has showed several predictive factors for developing microalbuminuria in Type 2 diabetes patients, and demonstrated a strong relationship between microalbuminuria and an abnormal fundus.