Question from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA:

My son is 17 and has had diabetes for 12 years. Today he was told he had too much protein in his urine and was placed on Accupril [a medication in the class called “ACE Inhibitors,” that decreases blood pressure and urinary protein levels]. Does this mean he is or will have kidney problems? His father, who is deceased, had kidney failure when my son was 2. We never were told about too much protein in his urine; he just had a blood test done and the kidney function was not good and eventually he needed a transplant which was successful but having diabetes at 4 back in 1959 took its toll and he died at age of 38. We really are scared my son will go down the same road.