Study of Urinary Podocalyxin As an Early Biomarker in Diabetic Nephropathy

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Internal Medicine & Nephrology, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University

2 Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University

3 Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University

Abstract

Background: Diabetic nephropathy is one of the major complications of diabetes and the leading cause of end-stage renal disease. Objectives: The main aim of the study was evaluation of urinary podocalyxin as a non-invasive marker for early detection of diabetic nephropathy, through assessing the level of urinary podocalyxin in patients with diabetic nephropathy and assessment of the correlation between urinary podocalyxin levels and severity & grades of diabetic nephropathy. Patient and methods: A prospective cohort study that was conducted in Internal Medicine Department in Zefta General Hospital and Zagazig University Hospital on 42 cases of diabetic nephropathy. Urinary podocalyxin was estimated by using commercially available podocalyxin ELISA test according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Results: The study showed that the area under the curve for validity of podocalyxin was measured to be 0.996. Also, there was significant association and agreement with sensitivity 97.6% and specificity 100%. Conclusion: Podocalyxin is a sensitive and valid marker in diabetic nephropathy that can be used for early detection of diabetic nephropathy in its early stages and can predict the prognosis of nephropathy.

Keywords