My lab levels are usually comparable to these levels, and appear to have been for the past six years (I looked at my old lab levels). My serum creatinine tends to run from 0.9-1.1. I'm just worried that I'm heading toward kidney failure...what do you all think??
Should I be worried?? My blood pressures are always around 100-110/60, and my HbA1c's haven't been above 6.7 for the last 5 years (usually am around the 6.2-6.4 range). I do exercise a lot (I run marathons and do triathlons) and I do eat a fairly high protein diet as well. I also am TERRIBLE about drinking any fluids...terrible. I'm trying to think of drinking fluids like taking medicine, and so far have increased my intake from 1 cup of coffee a day to about 60 fl oz of differing fluids (including water) since I got these results.
The number to look at is your Microalbumin/creatinine ratio for indications of kidney problems. You have some microalbumin showing up in your urine but the levels are considered within the normal range. A ratio under 30 mcg/mg is considered normal and you are at 11.5 mcg/mg.
Your creatinine levels from your blood test are on the upper end but are still considered well within normal range.
Both of these numbers can easily be inflated by your marathon and triathalon training, especially your urine microalbumin levels if you are dehydrated or work-out within 24-48 hours of giving the spot urine sample. I work out 3-5 a week and haven't seen a serum creatinine level under 1.0 for years.
I wouldn't worry about this at all. If you are concerned, make sure you are well hydrated and rested for at least 48 hours before your next test.
Yes I think drinking more could solve your troubles. All of those tests are very easily throw off by dehydration. The GFR is the test that is supposed to eliminate the dehydration issue, because it is a ratio of the other tests. Yours looks good, We all need to drink more and esp if you want a good test result. Just get into the habit of drinking lots of water the day before and all the time actually. :)
Hi Cat. Relax. The blood level of creatinine is fine. Urine levels vary and aren't as important. Your eGFR is slightly low, but that could be due to dehydration as you say you don't drink a lot. Especially since your levels have been stable for the last 6 years, you are doing fine. What you want to beware of is "creatinine creep". This is where the level slowly rises over time. I was pre-dialysis for over 20 years, on dialysis for 1 year and have had my transplant for almost 10 years now. Don't even think in terms of "failure" with numbers like you have. If you were to properly hydrate before labwork you would see a marked improvement and things would look even better.
I think the moral of the story is drink more. I've set up a "drinking schedule" to re-train my body that water/fluid is actually necessary, and I actually feel better overall. Between that and keeping my blood sugars even, hopefully that will keep my kidneys healthy. (Hopefully avoiding the "creatinine creep" you mentioned Cora).
I wouldn't even worry about the eGFR. The "e" means that it's estimated using some type of calculator based on your serum creatinine levels. Here's an example of one found online:
You can get a better estimate of GFR by looking at the total amount of creatinine lost in a 24 hour urine sample.
No estimate of GFR is going to be exact, but to give you an idea of the potential differences depending on method, my eGFR from spot urine tests always come back in the 60-80 range because of my serum creatinine levels, but when I did a 24 hour urine test it was in the 110-120 range.
Unless you have some other indicator of kidney damage, such as a microalbumin/creatinine ratio above 30, a doctor won't usually look at the eGFR.
Hi, I am 70 yrs young. I took Celebrex for four years and it destroyed my kidneys. My GFR is only 40.5. I am working with a nephrologist at Mayo Clinic in Phoenix AZ. So far I have been told that my kidneys are working fine but the filtration rate is impaired. My GRF goes from 40.5 to 50.0 up and down. I do drink at least 3 16oz water jugs of water a day. Recently when my tests were taken at Mayo my creatinine was 1.1., up a full point from last blood draw. Do I need to be worried? My uric acid was high as well. As I have gout. Uric Acid was 6.8. My arthritis doctor gave me. Uloric 40mg to bring down uric acid. I will wait for two weeks and take blood tests again to see if the GFR goes up with the Uric Acid down. Also hopefully my creatinine will come down. The doctors feel that the Celebrex damaged my kidneys. Any suggestions are more than welcome. I am glad I found this message board to vent.
