Albumin in urine linked to blood clots

Dutch researchers have linked elevated levels of the protein albumin in urine to increased blood clot risk.

The eight-year study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found 3 percent of study participants with microalbuminuria — having albumin in urine of 30-300 mg per 24-hour urine collection — developed a condition in which a blood clot or thrombus forms in a vein, or venous thromboembolism.

The fact that microalbuminuria has a high prevalence in the general population — 7.2 percent — suggests that on the population level, microalbuminuria may be an important risk factor for venous thromboembolism, the study authors said in a statement.

Moreover, in contrast to most of the established venous thromboembolism risk factors, microalbuminuria could be treated by non-anticoagulant medication. Future studies are needed to evaluate the effect of these drugs on the risk of venous thromboembolism.

The study, led by Bakhtawar Mahmoodi of the University Medical Center Groningen, included 85,421 inhabitants of Groningen, the Netherlands. Of the 40,856 who responded, a smaller group of 8,574 were examined at an outpatient clinic and followed an average of 8.6 years. The rate of annual incidences of venous thromboembolism came out to 0.40 percent for those having higher levels of albumin versus. 0.12 percent in those with normal levels.