Prevalence of abnormal urinary albumin excretion in a population-based study in Spain: results from the HERMEX Study

Eur J Clin Invest 2012; 42 (12): 1272–1277 Background HERMEX is a population‐based study which try to evaluate the relative weight of cardiovascular risk factors in the population of Extremadura. This report provides the data obtained about microalbuminuria in a large Spanish population. Design and methods Observational, cross‐sectional, population‐based study. A total of 3402 subjects were randomly selected from the Health Care System of Extremadura. The final sample included 2813 subjects (mean age 51·2 years, 53·5% female). Urinary albumin excretion rate (UAER) in first morning urine sample was analysed. Microalbuminuria was diagnosed when UAER was ≥ 22 in men or ≥ 31 mg/g in women. Results Prevalence of abnormal UAER in general population was 5·5% (microalbuminuria: 4·7%; proteinuria 0·8%). Microalbuminuria grew slightly in patients between 65 and 74 years and showed a dramatic increase in subject older than 75 years (P