Use of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound to Study Relationship between Serum Uric Acid and Renal Microvascular Perfusion in Diabetic Kidney Disease

Figure 2

Representative serial contrast-enhancement images in groups. NC, normal control; SUA, serum uric acid; DKD, diabetic kidney disease. All the subjects went through 6 stages including “start to enhance,” “cortical enhancement,” “cortical peak,” “started fading,” “continued fading,” and “wash-out phase.” Individuals in normal SUA and high SUA DKD groups reached their “cortical peak” stage faster than NC, and also they took less time to progress into the “wash-out phase” than the NC group.