Correlation of Renal Resistive Index, Serum Creatinine and Albuminuria in Patients with Diabetic Nephropathy

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the correlation between renal resistive index (RI), serum creatinine and urinary albumin in patients with diabetic nephropathy. Study Design: Prospective Analytical Study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Radiology, Combined Military Hospital, Multan Pakistan, from Jan to Aug 2025. Methodology: This study was conducted on 80 patients with diabetic nephropathy. Renal Doppler ultrasound was used to measure RI, while serum creatinine and 24-hour urinary albumin were analyzed biochemically. Data normality was assessed using Shapiro–Wilk test and correlations were tested with Spearman’s rank correlation. Post-stratification analysis was performed for age, gender, obesity, smoking, hypertension, diabetes duration and control. Significance was set at p-value ≤0.05. Results: Mean age of participants was 55.79±8.05 years; 60% were males and 40% females. Median BMI was 27.80 (IQR 4.3) with obesity observed in 12.5%. Hypertension was present in 51.2% and smoking in 25%. Median serum creatinine was 1.40 mg/dL, urinary albumin 425 mg/24h and RI 0.71. RI showed significant positive correlation with serum creatinine (r=0.506, p<0.001) and urinary albumin (r=0.354, p=0.001). These correlations persisted across most stratified subgroups. Conclusion: RI demonstrated strong positive correlation with both serum creatinine and urinary albumin, highlighting its role as a valuable, non-invasive imaging biomarker for early assessment of diabetic kidney disease.