Abstract
BACKGROUND: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a microangiopathy of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), which can damage the kidney through various ways and mechanisms due to the nature of the disease, involving the renal interstitium and glomeruli. However, in the early stage of the disease, patients only showed kidney volume increase and glomerular hyperthyroidism, and typical symptoms that are difficult to arouse individual attention were noticed. AIM: To observe the expression of serum retinol-binding protein (RBP) and urinary N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) in patients with DN, and to analyze their value in disease prediction, so as to provide new targets for early diagnosis and treatment of DN. METHODS: The baseline data of 50 T2DM patients treated in our hospital between January 2021 and December 2022 were retrospectively reviewed and included in group A. The baseline data of 50 patients with type 2 DN admitted to our hospital during the same period were collected and included in group B. The baseline data and serum RBP and urine NAG expression were compared between the two groups to analyze their value in the early prediction of DN. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in age, gender, duration of diabetes, combined hyperlipidemia and combined hypertension between the two groups (P > 0.05); the expression of urinary NAG and serum RBP in group B was higher than that in group A, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05); a multiple logistic regression model was established, and the results showed that urinary NAG and serum RBP were related to the presence or absence of injury in diabetic patients, and overexpression of urinary NAG and serum RBP may be risk factors for renal injury in T2DM patients (OR > 1, P < 0.05); receiver operating curve curve was plotted, and the results showed that the area under the curve of urinary NAG and serum RBP expression alone and in combination for predicting DN was > 0.80, and the predictive value was satisfactory; bivariate Spearman linear correlation analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between urinary NAG and serum RBP expression in patients with DN (r = 0.566, P = 0.000). CONCLUSION: The increased expression of urinary NAG and serum RBP may be the risk factors leading to the progression of T2DM to DN. The possibility of DN can be considered in patients with urinary NAG and serum RBP overexpression by examining the expression of urinary NAG and serum RBP in patients with T2DM in clinical practice.