Hi

[Seth61]

I am a sixty-one year old man with first time < 60 Egfr found last week using a blood test ordered by my GP. I plan to see a neph soon for further testing about my 54 Egfr, which fell from 62 in 15 months.

[Jonquiljo]

You need a few GFR tests over time to really tell what trends are. Either way with only 2 tests, you can’t be 100% sure that you really have gone from 62 to 54 in 15 months. The tests aren’t that reproducible and you need a few to determine real values. Also, at 61, a GFR of 54 is not frightening. I am 65 and have a GFR of 56.

You need a good internist to get a decent picture of what your blood levels show. Was GFR in each test computed with the same formula? It will say which formula in the print below your GFR result. Different formulas yield different results.

[Seth61 in reply to Jonquiljo]

HI, thanks for the info. I've had one kind of test, done by Quest Diag, which measured Egfr based on Urea and Creatinine. I wasn't feeling well the morning of the last one and my GP thinks I was dehydrated. Since the previous test, I began a rigorous exercise routine that involves running up a hilly, rocky trail or mountainbiking through hilly cornfield tractor roads, which are quite tough on on leg, back and diaphram muscles. For the last test I overate instead of fasting and lied to the Quest nurse about it, so hopefully this result is just bad karma for that.

[Jonquiljo in reply to Seth61]

eGFR is based on Creatinine and age only. No urea. Urea (BUN) shows dehydration the most. Did your creatinine go up a lot from your previous tests? GFR will go down a lille bit just because of age.

I wonder if instead of bothering to see a nephrologist, you just don’t repeat the test? Might want to add a urinalysis to check for protein.

Your numbers don’t seem really that bad. In fact, depending on how much you are working out - that alone could raise creatinine. Computing eGFR really doesn’t take into account a lot of things. Either way, good luck.

[Seth61 in reply to Jonquiljo]

Blood tested again on 7/22. Egfr is 53/1.73m2 (2% drop from Dec. '18). Creatinine is 1.41 (Upper range is 1.25). Urea N is 22.0 (Upper range is 25.0). I have an appointment with a neph in a week. I've now reduced the intensity of my physical activities, tried to hydrate more, eliminated table salt, reduced protein and OJ intake a bit, so hopefully there will be good results upcoming. I have no symptoms other than some fatigue which may have other causes, however no other issue appeared on the blood work, which included only BUN, chol, trig Hdl, Ldl, Chem-7, Liver func, TSH, T4 and T3, and Glucose. I'm a bit annoyed that my GP did not refer me to a neph after the test results in December however.