Microalbuminuria associated with a rise in blood pressure in non-insulin-dependent diabetes.

The association between microalbuminuria and systemic blood pressure was investigated in 80 nonproteinuric subjects with non-insulin-dependent diabetes. Seventeen of 80 diabetics had urinary albumin excretion rates (AER) over 20 micrograms/min and were defined as microalbuminuric. The microalbuminuric diabetics showed a higher incidence of proliferative retinopathy and neuropathy than the normoalbuminurics. Moreover, the former group had significantly higher values of systolic blood pressure compared to the latter, although the creatinine clearance was not significantly different between the two groups. These results suggest that microalbuminuria is strongly associated with a rise of systemic blood pressure in non-insulin-dependent diabetics.