Association of soluble receptor for advanced glycation end products levels with hypertensive albuminuria.

Objective: Soluble receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE) levels have been found to be decreased in chronic inflammatory diseases including atherosclerosis, hypertension and renal failure. This study evaluated the relationship between sRAGE concentrations and urinary albumin excretion in patients with essential hypertension. Methods: A total of 200 consecutive patients with essential hypertension were enrolled and were divided into 3 groups. Results: Plasma sRAGE levels were significantly lower in hypertensive patients with micro-or macroalbuminuria compared with those in hypertensive patients with normoalbuminuria, and the values in the macroalbuminuria group were even lower than in the microalbuminuria group (128.6 +/- 24.2, 244.6 +/- 37.6 +/- 313.6 +/- 30.7 pg/ml, respectively). In addition, plasma sRAGE level was an independent determinant of log urinary albumin excretion in patients with essential hypertension (beta = -0.267, P < 0.05). Conclusions: sRAGE may play a role in the pathogenic processes that link albuminuria, chronic inflammation and oxidative stress in hypertensive patients.