ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN BODY MORPHOLOGY AND MICROALBUMINURIA IN HEALTHY MIDDLE-AGED EUROPEAN, MAORI AND PACIFIC ISLAND NEW-ZEALANDERS

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between albuminuria and measure s of body morphology. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study of European, Maori and Pacific Island workers aged 40 y and over. SUBJECTS: 3960 non-dia betic, non-hypertensive, non-lipidaemic, non-proteinuric middle-aged m en and women. MEASUREMENTS: Height, weight, waist, hip, fasting and 2 h glucose, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, urinary creatinine a nd urinary albumin measurements. RESULTS: After adjusting for age and gender, the relative risks (95% confidence interval) of microalbuminur ia were 4.87-fold (3.10-7.64) higher in Maori, and 4.96-fold (3.40-7.2 4) higher in Pacific Islanders compared to European New Zealanders. In contrast, age and gender adjusted relative risks (95% confidence inte rval) for high albumin:creatinine ratios were 6.38 (4.27, 9.53) in Mao ri and 5.14 (3.54, 7.48) in Pacific Islanders compared to European wor kers. Workers with microalbuminuria had higher urinary creatinine conc entrations than those with urinary albumin in the normal range. Age an d gender adjusted partial correlation coefficients between urinary alb umin concentrations and the inverse of urinary creatinine concentratio ns were highest in European and Maori workers. Apart from Pacific Isla nders, urinary creatinine concentrations accounted for over 20% of the variation in urinary albumin concentrations in healthy individuals Ot her independent predictors of urinary albumin concentrations were wais t measurements, short stature and body mass index in Europeans and Pac ific Islanders, and systolic blood pressure levels and gender in Europ eans. After adjusting for age, gender, waist, height, 2 h glucose, uri nary creatinine, systolic blood pressure and body mass index Maori and Pacific Islanders still had significantly higher urinary albumin conc entrations than Europeans. CONCLUSION: Urinary creatinine concentratio ns were significantly associated with urinary albumin concentrations i n all ethnic groups, and, with the exception of Pacific Islanders, acc ounted for a large proportion of the variation in urinary albumin conc entrations in healthy individuals. Urinary albumin concentrations were associated with measures of obesity and short stature in Europeans an d Pacific Islanders, and systolic blood pressure levels and gender in Europeans. However, measures of body morphology did not completely exp lain the higher urinary albumin concentrations in Maori or Pacific Isl anders.