Objective To assess the therapeutic effect of sulodexide for diabetic patients with early nephropathy. Methods A total of 60 patients with early diabetic nephropathy (albuminuria: 30 to 300 mg/24 h, male/female: 30/30, mean age: 51.23 years, mean course of disease: 12.9 years) were randomized equally into three groups: the routine treatment group, cozaar group (50 mg qd, po for 12 weeks) and sulodexid group (600 LSU qd, iv or im for 4 weeks, 250 LSU bid, po for 8 weeks). The levels of urinary albumin excretion rate (UAER), urea nitrogen and creatinine were determined. Results After three months of treatment, the level of UAER was decreased significantly in both the sulodexide group and cozaar group (Plt;0.01), but not in the routine treatment group (Pgt;0.05). The level of UAER was reduced by 34.04% and 33.62% in the cozaar group and the sulodexide group, respectively. Significant difference was noted in the level of UAER between the cozaar/sulodexide groups and the routine treatment group (Plt;0.01), but no significant difference was observed between cozaar group and sulodexide group (Pgt;0.05). Conclusion Sulodexide could decrease the level of UAER in patients with early diabetic nephropathy. It has similar efficacy to cozaar.
