Bernd Schultes, Susanne Emmerich, Andreas D Kistler, Badreddine Mecheri, Oliver Schnell, Gottfried Rudofsky 

J Diabetes Sci Technol. 2021;19322968211054520. 

Qualitative albuminuria measurement using albumin-creatinine ratio (ACR) is recommended for the diagnosis of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). ACR can be measured in specialized laboratories or using ACR point-of-care testing (POCT). In this observational study, the authors evaluated the effect of ACR POCT utilisation on the DKD diagnosis and treatment for glycaemic control and blood pressure. 

The study found that out of the 717 participants with diabetes, 39.1% had a confirmed or suspected DKD diagnosis. Of these, 8.6% were newly diagnosed with DKD and 9.9% were suspected of having DKD based on the ACR POCT values.  Additionally, 100% of the physicians indicated that they used ACR POCT to examine patients with diabetes (with or without hypertension) and considered ACR POCT to be very important for patients with diabetes. 

The authors conclude that the implementation of ACR POCT may positively affect DKD diagnosis and subsequently allow better management of patients with diabetes. 

The full publication can be accessed here. 

COL-12530 03/2022