My 11 year old son has had type�1 for six years. What is your opinion about an ACE inhibitor being used to reduce the chances of kidney and eye complications?

All ACE inhibitors can and are used if there is hypertension or microalbuminuria.

Our group believes that blood pressure and urine microalbumin should be monitored regularly and early, and even the slightest persistent abnormalities should be treated aggressively. Controlling blood glucose is the far best thing that can be done in those with diabetes and associated blood pressure and urine microalbumin problems.

Family history suggests there are some who may have a genetic predisposition to such problems and the higher blood glucose readings merely brings this out sooner than would otherwise be the case.

ACE inhibitors are used in children and adolescents for the same reasons. There is no literature that proves that they should be used prophylactically although there is some speculation that this may be the case in the future.

SB