Abstract：【Objective】To investigate the relationship between urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) and early renal impairment in patients with hypertension. 【Methods】A total of 125 patients with hypertension who were treated in our hospital were recruited in the study. According to the 24-hour urine microalbumin excretion rate,a large number of proteinuria group (A group),micro-proteinuria group (B group) and normal proteinuria in the group (C group) were grouped. Healthy volunteers were selected as the control group. The serum creatinine (SCr),urea nitrogen (BUN),urinary NGAL and glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were compared among those groups. The correlation of urinary NGAL to SCr,BUN and eGFR was analyzed. The ROC curve was used to analyze the value of urinary NGAL in the diagnosis of early renal damage in patients with hypertension. 【Results】Compared with the control group,the SCr,BUN,and urinary NGAL levels in the hypertension group significantly increased,while the eGFR levels significantly decreased (P<0.05).The SCr,BUN and urinary NGAL levels in the A group and B group were higher than those in the C group,while the levels of eGFR in both A and B groups were lower than that in the C group (P<0.05). The levels of BUN and urinary NGAL in the A group were higher than those in the B group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the levels of SCr and eGFR between the A group and B group (P>0.05).The SCr,BUN,and urinary NGAL levels in the death group were higher than those in the survival group,and the eGFR was lower than the survival group (P<0.05).Pearson correlation analysis showed that urinary NGAL level was positively correlated with SCr and BUN,and negatively correlated with eGFR ( P<0.05).The AUC of the ROC curve for urinary NGAL diagnosis of impaired renal function in early stage of hypertension was 0.884. When the cut-off point was 78.9 ng/mL,the sensitivity and specificity were 87.2% and 84.9%,respectively. 【Conclusion】The level of urinary NGAL is significantly elevated in patients with hypertension,and its level is positively correlated with the degree of early renal injury. It can be used as a reliable indicator for the diagnosis of early renal injury in hypertension.
2022, Vol. 39 
