Levels

[Bradybean]

Hey guys im 5 week post transplant.. it took a while for my kidney to kick in. In the last 2 weeks my creatinine levels are 7.2 5.2 3.8 3.4.... last Thursday i was at 2.8 but as of today i was at 2.7... im curious to know if this will be my baseline or should i drop more in time... I would love to hear your experience .. thanks again

[Ladybug_05]

Hello Bradybean!

I'm 14 weeks post transplant If your kidney is working as it should, your levels should go down to what is considered normal, which is around or less than 1.00 for Creatine. How long did it take for your kidney to wake up? I ask, because if it's just now working as of 2 weeks ago, it could take some extra time for your levels to stabilize. Just keep pumping the water and eating healthily and trust your kidney to do as it's supposed to, and everything will work out. Your team should also have more information on your trend and be able to ease your concerns!

Personally for me, I had a live donor kidney that started to work right away. My creatine levels dropped from 4.78 to 1.3 overnight. I settled around 0.80-0.90 as my baseline after about 4-6 weeks. If my creatine is higher, then it's a sign that I need to up my water intake. I limit fluids like juices and sodas (although i am required a small dark cola per day to boost my phosphorus) to make sure I stay hydrated since I seem to dry out pretty fast.

Everyone is different, so our experiences and baselines will vary. Also, this is a big transition that our bodies are currently going through, so everything is going to take time. I hope this helps!

[Bradybean in reply to Ladybug_05]

My kidney took 3 weeks to wake up... I actually had blood work yesterday and i fell to 2.4..fom 2.7 in 2 days

[WYOAnne NKF Ambassador]

My creatinine was all over the place at first. For me, everything settled down and I had a steady creatinine of 0.9 when I was around 2 month post transplant. I remember being a little worried because the transplant center did a kidney biopsy when I was 2 1/2 months post transplant when my creatinine took a little rise. Everything was fine, with no rejection. For me anyway, it just took my body awhile to stabilize.

Yes, as Ladybug said, just continue to drink plenty of water, take your meds and do everything your doctors tell you. Any questions you have regarding what is going on with your new kidney should be addressed by your transplant team.

Everyone is different, so even though my base line is a creatinine of 0.9, your may be higher. Hard to compare one person from another.

[Donaldson0007]

I am a bit over 3 yrs post and my creatinine was as low as a .89 for about the first 3 mos post, has been as high as a 2, and is now steady at around 1.02. There may be so many different factors that can effect this, meds, diet, type of donor, fluid intake, metabolism. Everyone is different. Are Drs saying anything?

[Bob2018 in reply to Donaldson0007]

Hi Donaldson,

Just wondering I did my transplant in nov 2018 and it’s been little over 4 months creatnine was around 0.9 to 1.18. I was wondering does it always goes up for initial couple of months and then stabilize. I am have transplant center at saint barnabas and local nephro whom I go for checks up. Any increase is very concerning and get frustrated. I do exactly what I am suppose to do eat healthy drink enough water and urinate every 45 mins or so. Your particularly saw a significant rise and then sudden drop. Medicine wise I am on 2mg twice a day on tacrolimus and 4 tabs myfortic morning and 4 tabs in eve. Still on bactrim. Please if you can share your experience. Yes I am very young patient who got transplanted from even younger donor in late 20’s.

[Donaldson0007 in reply to Bob2018]

I did not see wide fluctuations, only very low in the beginning and a steady 1 or 1.01, 1.02 etc since that time. I take prograf and myfortic. Nothing else related to anti-rejection meds. Yes it can be frustrating as it seems the numbers are all they look at and sometimes not the big picture or our overall health.

[Dna4christ]

Hey. Im almost 8 yrs post transplant now and my creatine has settled itself to around 1.5 (wish it was lower tho lol). I received a live kidney from a friend which worked right away. My creatine begin to drop from 10 to .89 in about a week or two. Then after a year, it began to rise steadily. One time it was almost 2. I had a biopsy about 5 years ago and everything was fine. Now my baseline is 1.5 and it fluctuates with my diet especially higher when I eat a lot of red meat. My transplant team is completely fine with it too. Hope that can shed some light!

[nosillap]

Hi Brandybean. I’m 4.5 years post & my creatine holds at 1.2. All is well. Everyone is different. Good luck to you!!