Tianjin Medical Journal ›› 2026, Vol. 54 ›› Issue (1): 41-45.doi: 10.11958/20252563

• Clinical Research • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Development and validation of a random forest model for diabetic nephropathy with cardiac autonomic neuropathy

LI Lin1, LI Danyang1, CUI Yan2,()   

  1. 1 Department of Nephrology, First Affiliated Hospital of Jiamusi University, Jiamusi 154002, China
    2 Blood Purification Center of Daqing Oilfield General Hospital
  • Received:2025-07-22 Revised:2025-09-22 Published:2026-01-15 Online:2026-01-19
  • Contact: E-mail:yancuicuicc@163.com

Abstract:

Objective To develop and validate the random forest model based on glycolipid metabolism and cardiometabolic index (CMI) and to predict the risk of diabetic kidney disease (DKD) combined with cardiac autonomic neuropathy (CAN) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods A retrospective single-center study design was adopted. A total of 109 patients with DKD and CAN admitted between February 2023 and February 2025 were consecutively enrolled as the comorbidity group. Based on the baseline data of the case group, 109 T2DM patients without DKD or CAN during the same period were selected in a 1∶1 matching ratio as the non-comorbidity group. The baseline characteristics of the two groups were compared. Binary Logistic regression was used to analyze the influencing factors for the occurrence of DKD combined with CAN in T2DM patients. A random forest model was constructed using the R software package (version 4.1.0), and a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to analyze the predictive value of the model. Results Binary Logistic regression revealed that the urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR)>30 mg/g, elevated fasting plasma glucose (FPG), CMI, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and triglyceride (TG) levels were risk factors for the development of DKD combined with CAN in T2DM patients, while estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were protective factors. Using the variable importance measure (%IncMSE) for scoring and feature importance ranking, the top three factors were CMI, HDL-C and FPG, with %IncMSE values of 26.700%, 16.300% and 13.400%, respectively. Based on these influencing factors, the random forest model established to predict the occurrence of DKD combined with CAN in T2DM patients achieved an AUC of 0.849, a sensitivity of 0.862, a specificity of 0.730 and a Youden index of 0.592, with a 95% confidence interval of 0.738-0.933, demonstrating good predictive performance. Conclusion UACR >30 mg/g,elevated levels of FPG, CMI, HbA1c and TG, along with decreased levels of eGFR and HDL-C are risk factors for the occurrence of DKD combined with CAN in patients with T2DM, among which CMI is the key driver factor.

Key words: diabetes mellitus, type 2, diabetic nephropathies, diabetic neuropathies, cardiac autonomic neuropathy, glucose-lipid metabolism, cardiac metabolic index

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