Objective: This study was aimed to identify risk factors associated with proteinuria and assess the relationship between proteinuria and common comorbidities, and the clinical presentations of patients.
Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study involving 251 adults aged 18 years and older patients with proteinuria in Saudi Arabia from 2021 to 2023 attending family medicine clinics of the Ministry of National Guard - Health Affairs in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Data were collected from electronic medical records and analyzed for demographics, clinical features, predisposing factors, and urinalysis results.
Results: Most patients were aged 40 years and above, with obesity prevalent in 47.4% of the population. Most patients (83.5%) were non-diabetic, while 19.1% were diabetic. Abnormal renal function was evidenced by 17.9% with elevated blood urea nitrogen, 16.7% with abnormal creatinine, and 20.3% with reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate. Vitamin D deficiency was noted in 30% of patients. Dyslipidemia was widespread, with 51% displaying low levels of high-density lipoprotein, 19.1% had high triglycerides, and 14.3% had high levels of low-density lipoprotein. Notably, 50.6% of patients had hypertension, and significant associations were found between proteinuria and abnormal renal function tests.
Conclusion: The findings underscore the critical associations between proteinuria, renal function, and metabolic abnormalities, including dyslipidemia. These results highlighted the necessity for comprehensive evaluations in primary care settings and reinforced the role of routine urinalysis and renal assessments.
Key words: Proteinuria, urinalysis, risk factors, family medicine, Saudi Arabia
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