This study was done to evaluate clinical usefulness of cystatin C levels of serum and urine in predicting renal impairment in normoalbuminuric patients with type 2 diabetes and to evaluate the association between albuminuria and serum/urine cystatin C. Type 2 diabetic patients (n = 332) with normoalbuminuria (n = 210), microalbuminuria (n = 83) and macroalbuminuria (n = 42) were enrolled. Creatinine, urinary albumin levels, serum/urine cystatin C and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR by MDRD [Modification of Diet in Renal Disease] and CKD-EPI [Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration] equations) were determined. The cystatin C levels of serum and urine increased with increasing degree of albuminuria, reaching higher levels in macroalbuminuric patients (P < 0.001). In multiple regression analysis, serum cystatin C was affected by C-reactive protein (CRP), sex, albumin-creatinine ratio (ACR) and eGFR. Urine cystatin C was affected by triglyceride, age, eGFR and ACR. In multivariate logistic analysis, cystatin C levels of serum and urine were identified as independent factors associated with eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 estimated by MDRD equation in patients with normoalbuminuria. On the other hand, eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 estimated by CKD-EPI equation was independently associated with low level of high-density lipoprotein in normoalbuminuric patients. The cystatin C levels of serum and urine could be useful markers for renal dysfunction in type 2 diabetic patients with normoalbuminuria.

Coexisting Hashimoto's thyroiditis in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma was identified as a negative independent predictive factor for central lymph node metastasis.

Background/AimsThe objective of this study was to determine whether insulin resistance is associated with gallbladder stone formation in Korean women based on menopausal status.MethodsThe study included 4,125 consecutive Korean subjects (30-79 years of age). Subjects who had a medical history of diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, other cardiovascular disorders, or hormone replacement therapy were excluded. The women were subdivided into two groups according to their menopausal status.ResultsAnalysis of premenopausal women showed no significant differences in the homeostasis model of assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) index between the two groups in terms of gallstone disease. The associations between the occurrence of gallbladder stones and age, obesity, abdominal obesity, hyperinsulinemia, and high HOMA-IR index were statistically significant in the analysis with postmenopausal women. In a multiple logistic regression analysis, low high density lipoprotein-cholesterol was an independent predictor of gallbladder stone formation in premenopausal women. However, the multiple logistic regression analysis also showed that age and HOMA-IR were significantly associated with gallbladder stone formation in postmenopausal women. In an additional analysis stratified by obesity, insulin resistance was a significant risk factor for gallbladder stone formation only in the abdominally obese premenopausal group.ConclusionsInsulin resistance may be associated with gallbladder stone formation in Korean postmenopausal women with abdominal obesity.

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Background: Adipocytes produce several adipokines that modulate insulin action as well as glucose and lipid metabolism. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between serum adiponectin concentrations and metabolic syndrome (MS) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: This study included 127 type 2 diabetic patients (males 63, females 64). The subjects were divided into two groups as with or without metabolic syndrome (MS(+) or MS(-)). The MS was diagnosed by International Diabetes Federation. Serum adiponectin, leptin, fasting plasma insulin, glucose, glycated hemoglobin, lipid profile, white blood corpuscle (WBC), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), uric acid and C-reactive protein (CRP) were examined. Results: Serum adiponectin concentrations were significantly lower in MS(+) than MS(-) (4.8 ± 2.4 μg/mL vs 7.6 ± 5.8 μg/mL, 7.6 ± 3.7 μg/mL vs 11.5 ± 7.2 μg/mL, P < 0.05 in males and females). After adjustment for age and body mass index (BMI), in MS (+), the serum levels of adiponectin correlated positively with high density lipoprotein -cholesterol (HDL-C) and negatively with height, body weight, ALT and CRP. In MS(-), the serum levels of adiponectin correlated positively with HDL-C and negatively with diastolic blood pressure (DBP), triglyceride and CRP. By multiple regression analysis, no parameters were independently correlated with serum adiponectin concentrations in MS(+), while DBP and HDL-C were independently related to serum adiponectin concentrations in MS(-). Conclusion: Serum adiponectin concentrations were lower in type 2 diabetic patients with MS than without MS. There were no significant parameters related to decrease serum adiponectin concentrations in MS. But further study is needed to confirm this result.