Department of Preventive Medicine, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, South Korea.
Cardiovasc Diabetol. 2012 Sep 21;11:112. doi: 10.1186/1475-2840-11-112.
High normal values of urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) have been reported to have predictive values for hypertension, incident stroke, and higher mortality in the general population. This study aimed to investigate the association between normal ranges of UACR and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in adult population.
We performed a cross-sectional study in adults aged 45 to 74 years who were living in Namwon City, South Korea. Both common CIMTs were measured, and mean values were calculated. Normal values of UACR were defined as <30mg/g and categorized into quintiles; less than 6.50, 6.51-9.79, 9.80-13.49, 13.50-18.89, and more than 18.90 mg/g. The association between the quintiles of UACR and common CIMT was analyzed and stratified by sex.
A total of 7555 participants (3084 men and 4471 women) with normal UACR were enrolled in the present study. Common CIMT was positively and independently associated with increasing quintiles of UACR in men and women, even after adjusting for potential confounders including age and cardiovascular risk factors. Compared to the first quintile, the fifth quintile showed odds ratios of 1.80 (95% confidence intervals, 1.26-2.55) and 1.97 (1.28-3.04) for increased CIMT (>0.9mm) in men and women, respectively.
Higher UACR values within normal ranges (<30 mg/g) were positively and independently associated with CIMT in a Korean general population, suggesting that higher normal values of UACR might be a risk marker of subclinical carotid atherosclerosis.
高正常范围内的尿白蛋白与肌酐比值（UACR）已被报道在普通人群中具有预测高血压、中风事件和更高死亡率的价值。本研究旨在探讨成人正常 UACR 范围内与颈动脉内膜中层厚度（CIMT）之间的关系。
我们在韩国南原市进行了一项横断面研究，纳入年龄在 45 至 74 岁之间的成年人。测量了颈动脉内膜中层总厚度（CIMT），并计算了平均值。将 UACR 的正常范围定义为<30mg/g，并分为五等分；小于 6.50、6.51-9.79、9.80-13.49、13.50-18.89 和大于 18.90mg/g。分析了 UACR 五分位与 CIMT 之间的关系，并按性别进行了分层。
本研究共纳入 7555 名 UACR 正常的参与者（3084 名男性和 4471 名女性）。在男性和女性中，即使在调整了年龄和心血管危险因素等潜在混杂因素后，CIMT 也与 UACR 五分位的增加呈正相关且独立相关。与第一五分位相比，男性和女性 CIMT 增加（>0.9mm）的第五五分位的比值比分别为 1.80（95%置信区间，1.26-2.55）和 1.97（1.28-3.04）。
在韩国普通人群中，正常范围内（<30mg/g）较高的 UACR 值与 CIMT 呈正相关且独立相关，这表明较高的正常 UACR 值可能是亚临床颈动脉粥样硬化的一个风险标志物。
