Clinical diabetic nephropathy in a tropical African population.

Diabetic nephropathy is the single most important disorder leading to renal failure in adults in the Western countries and it is among the first three major causes of end stage renal disease in Nigeria. The aim of this study is to show the features of clinical diabetic nephropathy in the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Ogun State, Nigeria. The study group consists of 342 consecutive diabetic patients with persistent proteinuria (positive albustix) and diabetic retinopathy, seen from January 2000 to June 2001 in the Ogun State University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu. Clinical and laboratory parameters were recorded. Students' t-test and Spearman correlation coefficient were used in analysis. The frequency of occurrence of clinical diabetic nephropathy is 28.4% with majority already symptomatic despite normal biochemistry. Mean ages of type 1 and type 2 are 26+/-7.9 years and 53.4+/-6.3 years respectively with a sex ratio of 1.2:1. Mean duration of disease is 6.5+/-3.6 years and 9.4+/-4.1 years respectively. Two hundred and seventy-one (79.2%) patients were hypertensive. Nephrotic syndrome is not a common presentation. Diabetic nephropathy is a significant problem in this environment.