Glycated albumin level is significantly decreased in patients suffering nephrotic syndrome.

Serum glycated albumin (GA) level is used along with that of glucose and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) as indicators of glycemic control for diabetic patients. Although serum GA levels are affected by blood glucose level, they are also influenced by serum albumin metabolism and other pathological conditions. However, a systematic comparison of the serum GA levels in different types of human diseases has not been reported. In current study, 86,319 clinical lab test results of GA levels from healthy individuals and patients with 57 different types of diseases during the past 5 years in our hospital were retrieved and analyzed. Based on the mean (SD), median, and p (-Log₁₀p) values, we found 29/57 diseases including type 2 diabetes, diabetic nephropathy, uremia, pancreatic cancer, liver cancer, hepatic encephalopathy, and azotemia had significantly (p<0.05, -Log₁₀p>1.30) increased GA levels whereas 18/57 diseases including nephrotic syndrome, preeclampsia, Wilms' tumor, lupus erythematosus, and sepsis had significantly decreased GA levels compared to that of healthy controls. Moreover, the highest -Log₁₀p values (>100) were observed in nephrotic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, preeclampsia, coronary heart disease, uremia, acute cerebral infarction, leukemia, and cerebrovascular disease in a descending order. These data indicated that the serum GA levels could be increased or decreased significantly in a disease-specific manner. Revealing the molecular mechanisms underlying these observations might make the increased or decreased serum GA levels indicators for different types of diseases, especially as an indicator that distinguishes nephrotic syndrome from other types of kidney diseases.