Effect of long-term administration of picotamide on baseline and exercise-induced urinary albumin excretion in patients with type II diabetes mellitus and incipient nephropathy

• Published in: Clinical therapeutics Vol. 16; no. 2; p. 191
• Main Authors: Giustina, A, Ianniello, P, Bossoni, S, Comini, M T, Desenzani, P, Gazzoli, N, Romanelli, G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.03.1994
• Subjects: Adult; Albuminuria - etiology; Albuminuria - metabolism; Blood Pressure; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - drug therapy; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - metabolism; Diabetic Nephropathies - drug therapy; Diabetic Nephropathies - etiology; Exercise Test; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Phthalic Acids - administration & dosage; Phthalic Acids - therapeutic use; Pilot Projects; Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors - administration & dosage; Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors - therapeutic use
• ISSN: 0149-2918

The present pilot study investigated the effect of long-term treatment with picotamide on baseline and exercise-induced urinary albumin excretion levels in normotensive patients with type II diabetes mellitus. Six patients with type II diabetes were studied: four patients (two men and two women; mean age, 52 +/- 11 years) were treated for 9 months with picotamide (300 mg, TID) and two patients who did not receive the study medication served as controls. Three of the picotamide-treated patients were given a cycloergometric exercise test at baseline and after 3 and 6 months of therapy to evaluate the effects of the drug on exercise-induced microalbuminuria. Microalbuminuria at rest was measured in all patients at baseline and after 3, 6, and 9 months. At the end of the study, all the picotamide-treated patients demonstrated a significant decrease in microalbuminuria at rest (from 41.7 +/- 12.7 micrograms/min at baseline to 11.8 +/- 3 micrograms/min after 9 months) and after exercise (peak at baseline 103 +/- 36 micrograms/min vs 65.8 +/- 11 micrograms/min after 6 months). Conversely, in the two controls, microalbuminuria at rest increased from 45.1 +/- 0.9 micrograms/min at baseline to 151 +/- 59 micrograms/min at the end of the 9-month study period. (All values given as mean +/- SEM.) In conclusion, long-term administration of picotamide was effective in reducing abnormal exercise-induced microalbuminuria and albuminuria at rest. These findings suggest that long-term treatment with picotamide of normotensive patients with type II diabetes mellitus and incipient nephropathy may slow the progression of the nephropathy in its early stages.