John

[landini2018]

Hello Im a 38 year old male, my recent blood results showed my eGFR was 82 my creatinine was 90 is this a normal level

[MAS_Nurse]

Good morning landini2018,

Thank you for joining this supportive and very informative community.

In answer to your question Creatinine normal ranges are 70 - 120. The exact range in your hospital maybe slightly different. These ranges can be viewed at kidneycareuk.org

Also there is a wealth of information at kidneyresearchuk.org/health.... A eGFR of 82 is lower than a normal level. Speaking more with your GP or Consultant would give you a better picture as to your health.

This community of like minded members are very supportive and I am sure they will also answer your post.

Good luck.

MAS Nurse and Moderator.

[landini2018 in reply to MAS_Nurse]

Thank you for your reply my Gp told me this eGFR of 82 is normal.I also suffer from crohn's disease,Im on medication for this condition (Imuran 50mg one tab three times Daily) (Pentasa 500mg two tabs three times a day) (Calchew Two tabs Daily) (Humira injection 40mg/0.4ml every two weeks) can these medication affect my kidney blood results?.I also suffer from bladder cystitis can this also affect my kidneys,Im from ireland thanks

[MAS_Nurse in reply to landini2018]

Hi again, as your GP has your full medical history he is in the best position to advise you especially if you have a good relationship with him. Sorry you seem to have a few health problems and good luck with everything.

Do keep in touch with this forum as they are very knowledgeable about their kidney conditions and can be a good support to you.

Best wishes,

MAS Nurse and Moderator

[Zazzel]

Here's the deal. From the experience of many of us in this forum, GP doctors consider anyone with an EGFR over 60 normal which as our kind MAS nurse has pointed out is not really true. There are lots of factors to causing a reduction in kidney function. Medication can be one of them depending on the medication so discussing that with your doctor is important.

Being that Chrohns is a disease caused by inflamation, it is often associated with an autoimmune disease. Therefore, not only is it important to watch what you eat to control your Chrohns, it is also important for your kidneys. Every time you increase inflamation in your body, it causes stress on your kidney eventually scarring and weakening them in some cases. Keeping inflamation down can slow kidney disease progression.

[landini2018 in reply to Zazzel]

Thanks Zazzel for your Reply and the information,My GP book ultrasound scan on my kidney about 8 months, ago my kidneys are a normal size no scarring.But i have a kidney stone in my right kidney,GP said it small stone and will pass itself

[RickHow]

I will be an outcast in my reply. And it differs slightly from the expert MAS nurse and moderator. But that said I must admit I'm not medical expert. I base my reply on my experience with CKD and much more on what my doctors ALL tell me. I am in the United States. I have 5 doctors of different specialties. A gp, a kidney, a urologist, a cardiologist, and oncologist. They ALL (even the kidney doctor) say to not put too much faith in the efgr system except to track your level over time. They say it is a very flawed system. Because it reports a "normal" range based upon age, sex, race, times creatinine levels. BUT as they tell me, all humans of a particular age, sex, race are NOT the same. The egfr formula does not take into account are you muscular, are you tall, are you short, do you have other medical conditions, do you have one or two kidneys, what medications do you take, etc. ALL things that influence your "efgr" in reality. For example, I had a kidney removed. I am "elderly" (68). In many people with one kidney removed the other kidney picks up the function and actually the filters expand to handle increased workload. But in elderly this happens only slightly. So if you measure my egfr I am stage 3. HOWEVER my kidney function according to doctors is really typical and normal for my situation and age. They point to the fact that everyone is considered normal if egfr is over 60. Yet by definition of the system 60 is only 60% functionality. They all say they use egfr to measure any decline over time. If the egfr (no matter what it is) declines too significantly over time then it points to a problem. But one must also remember that starting between the ages of 30 and 45, it is NORMAL for kidney function to decline (just not sharply). They ALL point me to pay attention, as they do, to two other measurements which are better indicators of kidney function than egfr. Creatinine level and most significantly the Bun/Creatinine ratio.

This is my experience and the advice of my doctors. It may differ from yours and others.

Trust your own medical team is the best advice. They know you better than any of us can.

[Jonquiljo in reply to RickHow]

Very well said!!! Not only do I think this post is spot-on, but I will add to it.

GFR is totally based on only one biological measurement in your body, and that is of serum creatinine. For years, the medical community cannot even come to a consensus of how to measure GFR (there are multiple formulas), nor can they even agree on what they mean.

To top that, creatinine meaurements are an INDIRECT measurement of kidney function. Creatinine is not a kidney protein per se, but an unrelated metabolic protein whose serum levels is said to indicate stage of CKD. For the higher levels of CKD this may be true (levels 4,5). For earlier stages, the published literature is very unclear. If you have a precipitous drop in GFR, that is of concern. Long term trends are better indicators of kidney function, especially when combined with other types of evaluations.

Also, there are so many drug interactions and other conditions to consider when looking at GFR, the meaning of all of this becomes more obscure - especially at higher GFR’s. TRENDS IN GFR are the best we can use.

As “Rickhow” said above, many Dr’s tell you to look at the WHOLE picture, not just GFR. When I have spoken to physicians, they feel that the whole CKD staging system is potentially flawed, especially in the early stages. I certainly have seen nothing in the medical literature that scientifically supports GFR as a predictor of kidney funtion in early stages.

I will say that I am NOT a physician, but do have extensive biological training (Ph.D. In Molecular Biology since 1982). I can certainly analyze medical literature as well as many. So please, do not jump to conclusions based on a GFR alone. There are many other tests that can complete the picture. Good luck.

[landini2018]

Thanks RickHow for your Reply I hope you are doing well.You give me great information, I am on medication for crohn's disease my crohn's doctor never made any comment on my kidney funtion test at my last appointment which was last monday,he was very happy with my crohn's, he said all my blood results where normal

[curleytop1]

Have just read landini2018's post. Because of the various factors given above, I have never been given any GFR figures by my GP or the Renal Department of our local Hospital. I have been told that people get fixated on them and that they naturally go up and down. I was shown a chart which showed that for the previous 5 years the figures had remained stable and hopefully they will stay that way. Now two years on I am hoping that I will be monitored again to see what is happening, and will see a GP tomorrow - not the usual one so it will be new territory for me! I am about to write down the questions I would like answered, but whether this happens is another matter! Good luck landini2018 - Curleytop1.