An Observational Study on the Association Between Surrogates of Visceral Adiposity and Albuminuria in Type 2 Diabetes

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the associations between albuminuria and visceral adiposity in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Materials and methods: This single-center crosssectional study included patients with T2D. Anthropometric measurements, urine analyses, and fasting blood tests, were conducted. Patients diagnosed with hepatosteatosis within the past 3 months were invited to undergo transthoracic echocardiography to measure epicardial fat thickness (EFT). The clinical, laboratory, and imaging findings of patients with microalbuminuria ( > 30 mg/day) were compared with those of patients without microalbuminuria using chi-square tests and t-tests. Results: The study included 702 patients with a mean age of 58.9±10.9 years and a male predominance (57.8%). Microalbuminuria was present in 253 patients (36%). In the group with microalbuminuria, age, levels of glucose, triglycerides, HbA1c, FIB-4, and visceral adiposity index (VAI) scores were higher, while glomerular filtration rate (GFR), high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels, and the frequency of hypertension were lower compared to the patients without microalbuminuria (p < 0.05 for all). Out of 169 patients who underwent liver ultrasonography, hepatosteatosis was observed in 138 individuals (81.7%). Among the 59 patients who underwent echocardiography, an increased EFT was found in 25 (42.4%) patients. No significant differences were observed in EFT, hepatic steatosis presence, or stage between the microalbuminuria and non-microalbuminuria groups (p = 0.807, 0.834, and 0.351, respectively). Conclusions: While no associations were found between microalbuminuria and hepatosteatosis or EFT, patients with microalbuminuria showed higher VAI and FIB-4 scores. The findings underscore the potential of these scores in predicting microalbuminuria in patients with T2D.