Urinary Albumin Excretion, Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate, and Prevalence of Microalbuminuria in Obese Nondiabetic and Nonhypertensive Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

CONTEXT: Obesity even in absence of diabetes and hypertension increases the risk for microalbuminuria (MAU), glomerular hyperfiltration, and therefore nephropathy. AIMS: This study aims to assess the urinary albumin excretion (UAE), prevalence of MAU, and values of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) in obese nondiabetic and nonhypertensive patients, vis a vis thin healthy subjects, and attempts to correlate anthropometric measurements with UAE and eGFR. SETTING AND DESIGN: Cross-sectional analytical study on 60 cases who were obese according to Asia Pacific guidelines and 60 nonobese controls. Patients with diabetes, hypertension, ischemic heart disease, and established renal disease were excluded. METHODS AND MATERIAL: Albuminuria was assessed in each patient by quantitative immunoturbidimetry method on a spot urine sample. eGFR was calculated by Cockcroft–Gault formula. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Data was analyzed using SPSS (2015 version). Mann–Whitney U-test, Fisher Exact test, and Spearman's correlation coefficient was used for various variables. RESULTS: The mean age of cases was 31.90 ± 6.32 years. About 78.33% were in class 1 and 21.66% in class 2 obese groups. The mean UAE at 21.20 ± 26.82 mg/g creatinine was higher in the case group. The prevalence of MAU was 11.66% and 3.33% in case and control groups, respectively. The cases had a significantly higher mean eGFR of 123.29 ± 20.49 mL/min/kg as compared with controls who had a mean eGFR of 106.59 ± 10.15 mL/min/kg. There was moderate correlation between anthropometric measurements and eGFR. CONCLUSION: Younger, class 1 obese patients had a higher UAE, eGFR, and three times higher MAU prevalence, even in absence of diabetes and hypertension, with a correlation between anthropometry and eGFR as compared with nonobese individuals.