Objective · To explore the risk factors associated with short-term progression of albuminuria in the patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods · The retrospective cohort study design was performed to consecutively recruit 210 hospitalized T2DM patients who met the inclusion criteria, including 102 males and 108 females April 2010 to April 2015. The data of the patients twice in hospital (as baseline and follow-up information, respectively), including general data, biochemical examinations and medication were collected. Multivariate Logistic analysis was used to explore the potential risk factors for baseline albuminuria and short-term progression of albuminuria. Results · Serum uric acid levels were significantly higher in the patients with macroalbuminuria ( ≥ 300 mg/24 h) than those in the patients without albuminuria (< 30 mg/24 h) at baseline (P0.002). Among the 207 patients (excluding 3 samples with missing data) during the second hospitalization, 51 patients (24.6%) had progress in albuminuria and 156 patients (75.4%) had none. Serum uric acid levels were significantly higher in the progression group than those in the non-progression group (P0.009). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that high serum uric acid level was an independent risk factor for progression of albuminuria in T2DM patients (OR1.349, 95%CI 1.014-1.793, P0.040). Conclusion · The high serum uric acid level may be an independent risk factor for short-term progression of albuminuria, and early intervention with hyperuricemia might delay the progression of diabetic kidney disease in T2DM patients.