Effect of LDL cholesterol and treatment with losartan on end-stage renal disease in the RENAAL study

Renal pathology and dyslipidemia commonly coexist. Treatments that lower albuminuria/ proteinuria may lower lipids, but it is not known whether lipid lowering independent of lessening albuminuria/proteinuria slows progression of kidney disease. We examined the association between LDL cholesterol levels and treatment with losartan on end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Lipid levels and albuminuria measurements were obtained at baseline and at year I in a post hoc analysis from the Reduction of Endpoints in NIDDM with the Angiotensin II Antagonist Losartan (RENAAL) study, which compared the effects of losartan-versus placebo-based antihypertensive therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes and nephropathy. LDL cholesterol lowering was associated with a lower risk of ESRD; however, this seemed to be largely an association with the reduction in albuminuria.