[Profile of diabetic nephropathy at the National Reference General Hospital of N'Djamena (Chad)].

INTRODUCTION: Diabetes mellitus is a real health problem and its complications affect many organs including the kidneys. Early diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy allows to treat patients more effectively and with a multidisciplinary approach, to slow its progression in chronic renal failure. Few studies have been conducted in Africa in this field of study. In Chad, we have no statistics on renal disease related to diabetes. That is why we propose to study diabetic nephropathy with the aim of analyzing the profile of diabetic nephropathy in patients at the National Reference General Hospital of N'Djamena (CHAD).

METHODS: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study at the National Reference General Hospital in N'Djamena from April to September 2012. All patients with diabetes hospitalized or treated in the department of nephrology and endocrinology were included in the study.

RESULTS: There were 54 cases of diabetic nephropathy out of a total of 181 patients (29.80%). The patients over the age of 50 years accounted for 87%, masculine gender dominated (67%), diabetes' progression time at the moment of nephropathy discovery was 10.25 years, mean blood pressure was 138 mm Hg, HbA1c was greater than 6.5% in 74.5%, end-stage renal disease (ESRD) was found in 26.90%, proteinuria 2.65 g / 24 h was found in 60.30%. 57.4% of patients had stage III diabetic retinopathy.

CONCLUSION: In Chad, the frequency of diabetic nephropathy is approximately 29.83%. This is a condition that affects men with an average age of 58.7 years. Type 2 diabetes is the most common (90.7% of cases). Poorly controlled risk factors might lead to diabetic nephropathy progression in impaired renal function, namely hypertension (70.8%), in glycemic control (66.7%) and in proteinuria (62.5%).