Prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) progressively increases around the world. Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is significant reason of end-stage renal disease and it is associated with high risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality. Necessity of expensive renal replacement therapy for patients with prominent vascular diabetic complications and end-stage renal disease has significant socio-economic impact. DM, as a one of leading causes of kidney diseases, competes for stricted resources of public health. Renal replacement therapy in patients with DM does not solve the whole problem, because survival of such patients is low, comparing with another kidney diseases, first of all because of cardiovascular diseases. Good control of glycaemia, blood pressure and cholesterol level and prescription of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors and statins decrease cardiovascular risk and slow down DN progression, as it was shown in many clinical trials. So patients with DM and DN should receive complex therapy for risk reduction of kidney disease and cardiovascular disorders progression. Keywords: diabetes mellitus type 2, diabetic nephropathy, nephroprotection, cardioprotection, SGLT-2 inhibitors, GLP-1 agonists, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system For citation: Trubitsyna NP, Zaitseva NV, Severinа AS. Diabetic nephropathy: what should cardiologist remember. Consilium Medicum. 2021; 23 (1): 20–24. DOI: 10.26442/20751753.2021.1.200712