Clinical and biochemical characteristics of the study subjects
| Parameters | Normoalbuminuric group (n=907) | Microalbuminuric group (n=518) | p Value |
| Age (years) | 51 (10) | 54 (11) | <0.001 |
| Male (%) | 577 (63.6%) | 299 (57.7%) | 0.03 |
| Age at diagnosis (years) | 45 (10) | 46 (11) | NS |
| Duration of diabetes (years) | 6 (6) | 8 (7) | <0.001 |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | 25.2 (4.2) | 24.8 (4.1) | NS |
| Systolic BP (mm Hg) | 133 (16) | 138 (17) | <0.001 |
| Diastolic BP (mm Hg) | 83 (7) | 84 (8) | 0.013 |
| Fasting blood glucose (mmol/l) | 9.9 (3.6) | 11.5 (4.8) | <0.001 |
| HbA1c (%) | 9.1 (2.2) | 9.7 (2.3) | <0.001 |
| Serum creatinine (μmol/l) | 80.4 (29.2) | 84.1 (19.4) | 0.010 |
| Serum cholesterol (mmol/l) | 5.0 (1.0) | 5.0 (1.1) | NS |
| Serum triglycerides (mmol/l) | 2.2 (1.6) | 2.2 (2.0) | NS |
| High density lipoprotein-cholesterol (mmol/l) | 1.0 (0.26) | 1.0 (0.34) | NS |
| No (%) with ischaemic heart disease | |||
| Ischaemia | 45 (5) | 47 (9) | 0.002 |
| Infarction | 18 (2) | 15 (3) | NS |
| No (%) with retinopathy | |||
| NPDR | 72 (8) | 83 (16) | <0.001 |
| NPDR with maculopathy | 45 (5) | 62 (12) | <0.001 |
| Proliferative retinopathy | 7 (0.8) | 14 (3) | <0.001 |
| Peripheral vascular disease | 6 (0.7) | 7 (3.3) | <0.001 |
| Neuropathy | 45 (5.0) | 64 (12.4) | <0.001 |
Data are No(%) or mean (SD). NPDR = non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy; BP = blood pressure; HbA1c = glycated haemoglobin.