how concerned should we be by the rise in serum creatinine?
PURPOSE: To determine the association between the early rise in serum creatinine levels associated with the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) and the long-term renoprotective properties of these drugs in patients with chronic renal insufficiency. BACKGROUND: Large-scale clinical trials have demonstrated survival benefits of ACE inhibitors in patients with heart failure. In patients with renal insufficiency, whether associated with diabetes mellitus or not, use of ACE inhibitors is associated with slowing in the progression of renal disease. In fact, patients who have the most advanced renal insufficiency at baseline are the ones who show the maximum slowing of the disease progression, but these patients are also more likely to show an early rise in serum creatinine levels after ACE inhibitor therapy. There is evidence that patients with renal insufficiency often do not receive ACE inhibitors. There is also evidence that patien
