Microalbuminuria and casual and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in normotensives and in patients with borderline and mild essential hypertension.

Several reports suggest that urinary albumin excretion may be elevated in patients with essential hypertension and that this index may be a good predictor for cardiovascular complications. The aim of this study was to compare 24-hour urinary albumin excretion in a group of normotensives, borderline, and untreated mild hypertertensives and to assess, in a subgroup of them, the possible relations between microalbuminuria and arterial blood pressure. Fifteen normotensives, 16 borderline, and 19 mild hypertensive patients were studied. Slightly but significantly higher values of microalbuminuria were observed in the mild hypertensives compared to the other two groups. In 21 borderline and mild hypertensive patients 24-hour microalbuminuria was related to casual blood pressure and noninvasive ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. A significant correlation was found between microalbuminuria and average day-time diastolic blood pressure. Our data suggest that albumin excretion is slightly increased in mild arterial essential hypertension; the direct association between microalbuminuria and arterial diastolic blood pressure during daily activities seems to confirm a pathophysiological link between transcapillary protein escape and arterial blood pressure that warrants further studies.