Correlation Between Spot Urinary Protein-Creatinine Ratio and 24-Hour Urinary Protein Excretion in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Spot Urinary Protein-Creatinine Ratio and 24-Hour Urinary Protein Excretion in T2DM

Abstract

Diabetic kidney disease is a significant complication of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and chronic proteinuria is a significant indicator of renal damage. Although the quantification is generally done by 24-hour urinary protein estimation, which is rather convenient, it is subject to collection errors. Objectives: To identify the relationship between spot urinary protein-creatinine ratio (PCR) and 24-hour urinary proteinuria in T2DM patients. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional study, which was carried out at the Department of Medicine, Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan, between August 2024 and February 2025. Non-probability consecutive sampling was done to enroll 190 patients aged 30-65 years with T2DM over 5 years. Measurement and Pearson correlation coefficient were used to measure 24-hour urinary protein and spot urinary PCR. The p-value of less than 0.05 was regarded as significant. Results: The average age was 47.24/10.75 years old, and 53.7 percent of the respondents were men. Mean 24-hour urinary protein excretion was 1011.26 ± 466.17 mg/day, while mean spot PCR was 1.25 ± 0.66 mg/mg. There was a high positive correlation between spot PCR and excretion of urinary protein in 24 hours (r = 0.805, p=0.001). There were significant positive relationships between demographic and clinical subgroups as well. Conclusions: The spot urinary PCR significantly correlated with 24-hour urinary protein excretion and could be used as an alternative to a regular evaluation of proteinuria in T2DM patients.