Is antihypertensive treatment the same for NIDDM and IDDM patients?

The prevalence of abnormally elevated albumin excretion rate (> 30 mg/24 h) is approximately 40% in insulin-dependent (IDDM) and non-insulin-dependent (NIDDM) diabetic patients. Diabetes has become the leading cause of end-stage renal failure in the US, Japan and Europe. Approximately 90% of the direct and indirect cost of caring for diabetic patients are spent on the complications of diabetes. Identification of patients at high risk of developing diabetic nephropathy is possible by screening for microalbuminuria (30-300 mg/24 h). Elevated urinary albumin excretion rate indicates a substantially increased mortality risk in diabetic patients. Randomised controlled trials in normotensive IDDM and NIDDM patients with persistent microalbuminuria indicate that ACE inhibitors diminish urinary albumin excretion rate, postpone it and may even prevent progression to clinical overt nephropathy. These findings indicate that screening and intervention programs are likely to have life saving effects and lead to considerable economic savings. Systemic blood pressure elevation to a hypertensive level is an early and frequent phenomenon in diabetic nephropathy. Furthermore, nocturnal blood pressure elevation (non-dippers) occurs more frequently in patients with nephropathy. Systemic blood pressure elevation and to a lesser degree albuminuria accelerate the progression of diabetic nephropathy. Effective blood pressure reduction with non-ACE-inhibitors and/or ACE-inhibitors frequently in combination with diuretics: (a) reduces albuminuria; (b) delays the progression of nephropathy; (c) postpones renal insufficiency; and (d) improves survival in IDDM and NIDDM patients with diabetic nephropathy. A specific renal protective effect of ACE-inhibitors in diabetic nephropathy has been demonstrated in IDDM patients with moderately reduced kidney function (s-creatinine > 133 mumol/l) while the data conflict with NIDDM patients. Antihypertensive treatment for diabetic nephropathy simultaneously extends life and saves money. Finally, reduced risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events have been demonstrated when diabetic patients with isolated systolic hypertension are treated with blood pressure lowering agents. Absolute risk reduction with active treatment compared to placebo was twice as great for the diabetic versus non-diabetic patients (101/1000 versus 51/1000 randomised participants at the 5-year follow-up), reflecting the higher risk of diabetic patients. In conclusion, early detection and aggressive treatment of arterial hypertension with ACE-inhibitors, long acting calcium antagonist and low dose diuretics as first line drugs are highly warranted in diabetic patients with or without diabetic renal disease.