I had my blood drawn and urine taken a week ago and got results at doctors today. My kidney test were high.
Quant Microalbumin 175 mg/L high should be 0-20
Urine Creatinine 203 mg/dL high should be 30-125
Microalb/Creat Ratio 86 mg/g high should be 0-30
All other tests were within normal range except for glucose. My a1c was 5.9,
The doctor said this was an indication of early kidney disease. He was particularly concerned because I have had 3 kidney infections since I was diagnosed 13 months ago. I have to go back next week for for another test, in the mean time he instructed me to go easy on the protein. More diet restrictions might be necessary after further tests.
Iām really scared, life on dialysis would be short and unhappy. My mom is concerned and is looking for a specialist in diabetic kidney disease. Has anyone else had high tests like these? What was the outcome?
I know it is scary but you need to understand, this may or may not kidney disease. It may be related to kidney infections and it may just be the way you are. You have not had diabetes very long and usually it takes high blood sugars over an extended period of time to damage your kidneys. You have not had this. My daughter had high levels of protein in her urine and after extended testing the doctor concluded that she just normally dumped some protein. And your activities can change things, most people actually dump some protein in their urine after strenuous exercise. Strenuous exercise also can markedly increase urine creatinine.
The proper thing to do is to visit a kidney specialist, have him do some more tests and then figure out what is going on. But at least for now there shouldnāt be a reason to freak out.
Brianās offered some good advice. Iād just like to add to make sure youāre well-hydrated every dayāthat can affect kidney function test outcomes, too.
I know it is scary. I was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease about 18 months ago; 18 months after I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I always knew the pkd was possible, since it runs in my family. My labs are oak, with the exception of being a little high on protein. I focus on my diabetes, and I do my best to manage it. The doctor said that with pod, it follows the same pattern as family members. My grandmother died of an aneurism caused by pkd. I am not sure of of her age, but my mom (who also has pkd), and I go to the same specialist. My mom is in early stage 3 kidney failure. When she reaches near the age when my grandmother died, she will go through regular mris to check for aneurisms, and I will do the same when I reach that age.
I know you are scared and worried, but remember our health care is more advanced, and a kidney specialist will give you more answers. I also went through a year with kidney infections, and hard to clear ones at that, but I have since improvedā¦
Maybe it was strenuous exercise that caused it. The day before the tests I helped my mother rearrange furniture. We moved a lot of heavy things from one bedroom to another, when we were done we were exhausted. Iāll tell the doctor about this on my next visit.
Maybe I was dehydrated. I had been instructed not to eat or drink anything after midnight the night before the test. In the morning I had little urine and at the lab I had drink water and wait to get enough urine to test. The lab techs and doctor knew this but maybe they didnāt take it into consideration.
My mother has a referral to a doctor said to specialist in diabetic nephropathy. Weāll ask my endo doctor about this on my next visit. I just added it up, Iāve been in the hospital 3 times with kidney infections for a total of 34 days since diagnosis, now this. Iāve just about given up all hope of ever living a normal life.
First, let me say that I am truly sorry to hear your current situationā¦ Although I do not have any advice because of my still shallow knowledge of our condition, I was alarmed by the fact that your A1c number looking great, yet you find your self in a very scary situation.
I know that complications are sometimes just bad luck and can be out of our hands, but this is VERY scary for a diabetic rookies like myself to hear
My initial stay at the hospital when I got diagnosed was extended because my kidney numbers were high, which I didnāt know how serious this was at the time (ignorance sometimes can be a blissing) and my doc. wanted to wait and see if it improves and it did.
I hope your situation improves like mine did without any scary outcome.
I didnāt think I would find another Japanese person, but I wish we were acquainted under a brighter postā¦ good luck!
Like others have said, I havenāt been diabetic long enough for my kidney problems to be a complication. Rather I believe it was caused by the series of kidney infections.
I was quite surprised by my last A1c (5.9) because we just moved here from Japan. All the preparation and the move and settling in our new house in DC had my glucose control marginal. I had expected a higher A1c.
Yes I am a āJapanese personā. I was born in Hawaii, both my parents were 3rd generation Japanese. My father was an Air force pilot and was killed in Iraq. I was raised by my mother and grand parents in Hawaii and San Diego. My mother was transferred to Tokyo and I lived there for almost 3 years. I attended the American School in Tokyo. It was the happiest time of my life until I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. We now live in DC, I miss Japan and hope to live there again someday.
I am currently in Korea because of my job as a translator/interpreter.
From what Iāve been reading around the net, it seems like Korea is pretty competent when it comes to type 1s.
The first doctor I saw (although I knew I āmightā be a diabetic before going in from my symptoms) right away sent me to a specialist after checking my bg, because he wasnāt one.
The hospital was quite small and in a rural area, 45 minutes from the capital but he at least knew the difference between type 1 and 2.
It also helps that Korea isnāt a huge country as far as land mass goes.
The government coverage for diabetic care here is pretty good as well.
I get 90% coverage on needles, lancets, testing strips and swabs.
On insulin, I only pay around 25 us dollars for 5 Humalog and 5 Lantus pens.
Canāt remember how much I get covered on the insulin.
Only complain I have is the way they distribute the 90% coverage.
It is a reimbursement system, every 3 month where I go spend 250 dollars worth of goods and the government gives me back 225 dollars.
It sounded great until I found out that I needed to get 3 month worth of supplies āevenlyā between the āessentialsā.
Their idea of 3 month worth of supplies of needles are 4 boxes with 100 in eachā¦ which I really rather have the extra 100 test strips and 1 less box of needles.
I am planning to ask my doctor to write me a note next time I go in.
I also read the coverage in Japan, and it sounded really complicated.
They use a āpointā system to determine how many test strips you get, and from what I understand they receive only 70% government support. This information could be wrong, as I read it off of a fellow type 1ās blog.
I should find out though because I am planning to head back home in the future
Darnā¦ very sorry to hear about your father.
You have been through a lot in your life.
Iāve lost my father at a very young age as well but really too young to remember him much.
I also lived all over the world and did most of my growing up in Toronto.
In fact Iāve only lived in Tokyo until I was 5, and besides the occasional trip/visit, never really lived there.
I am planning to relocate my family there soon.
I really hope you get better, and donāt lose hope sis.!
I have had labs similar to yours since 2007. They havenāt changed in all these years one way or the other. My doctors have never been concerned about them and never give me any directions in how to eat or do to improve the condition or stop progression other than to get and keep my blood sugar under control (your A1c indicates good control). Other than that they just tell me āWeāll keep an eye on itā.
There are a lot of things that can cause these test results, dehydration, excessive exercise, ect. and many times doctors will want to see repeat results before making a diagnosis. At least this is what Iāve been told.
I went to the doctor this morning. He ordered a 24 hour urine test. I have a bottle keep all my urine for 24 hours and have to keep it in the refrigerator.
This is the first time I wish I was a boy, the test would be easy, not so easy for a girl. Iāll be staying home from school tomorrow and collecting urine.
Your post was very reassuring to me, yours tests stayed the same for 8 years with no progression. Everything I read about it said is was often a progressive disorder leading to eventual kidney failure.
So sorry that you are having such health challenges! Very glad that there are other people here who can share their experiences about kidney issues.
A drag to have to collect your urine all day, but you can do it! At least the doctor is looking for additional information to diagnose what is going on.
The reference range on the A1c is 0 - 5.6. Does that mean a normal none diabetic person would have an A1c between 0 and 5.6? Iāve always considered anything below 6.5 as good for a Type 1, am I wrong?
I said all my other tests were normal, I was wrong. My LDL was 129, within range <130 so I thought this was ok. The doctor told me today that for a diabetic he likes it below 100. He wants me to take a statin drug to get it down. Iāve read a lot of bad things about statin drugs and unsure about taking them. My mother is going to decide.
Reference ranges vary at different labs. Iāve seen some list as high as 6.8 as ānormalā although that isnāt a level I would consider normal.
The lab that did my labs at diagnosis called normal 4.0-6.0,
6.0-6.5 āprediabeticā and greater than 6.5 ādiagnostic for diabetesā
For a t1 diabetic managing their blood sugar with insulin, 5.9 is very good, showing youāre maintaining comparable overall blood sugars, on average, to someone who doesnāt have diabetes.
Statins are a subject of quite a bit of debate around here. My personal philosophy is to follow my doctors guidance, and if it ever reached a point where I wasnāt comfortable with that Iād be looking for a second opinion (or a new doctor) instead of refusing treatment advised by the one I have.
@supajap@madison3@irrational_John
Dear Madison, Iām sorry to hear about your situation, hopefully they will find out whatās going on asap, and that itās not something bad.
I just wanted to say hi to fellow Asians, I am currently living in Hong Kong, but grew up in Vancouver, UK and Japan, in fact I will be flying back to Japan for a short trip two days later. I wonder if we are the only asians here
Wishing you all the best Madison, ę°ćć¤ćć¦ dear : )
