Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is a promising biomarker of acute kidney injury. There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that NGAL is also a marker of kidney disease and severity in chronic kidney disease (CKD). We studied the utility of urinary NGAL in more accurately predicting renal function in patients with diabetic CKD.
We studied possible relationships between urinary NGAL, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), and proteinuria in diabetic CKD patients and in healthy populations.
Urinary NGAL levels were significantly higher in CKD patients than in healthy controls (96.0 [2.7 to 975.2] ng/mL vs. 18.8 [1.3 to 81.9] ng/mL, P=0.02), and the GFR was lower among CKD patients (49.3 [13.1 to 78.3] mL/min/1.73 m 2 vs. 85.6 [72 to 106.7] mL/min/1.73 m 2, P<0.0001). The urinary NGAL level showed a significant inverse correlation with GFR ( r=-0.5634, P<0.0001). The correlation analyses between urinary protein level and urinary NGAL levels and GFR were as follows: urine protein and urinary NGAL ( r=0.3009, P=0.0256), urine protein and GFR ( r=-0.6245, P<0.0001), urine microalbumin and urinary NGAL ( r=0.1794, P=0.2275), and urine microalbumin and GFR ( r=-0.5190, P=0.0002).