What is serum creatinine?

serum creatinine is a concentration of compounds known as creatinine in the blood or urine. It is tested during routine metabolic panels, usually to evaluate a patient who may be at risk of kidney disease. Most laboratories have the ability to control serum creatinine and often provide service on the same day with quick results.

serum creatinine tests can be recommended as part of a comprehensive patient panel or as a separate test because there are specific concerns. If your doctor recommends this diagnostic test, patients may want to ask why it is recommended what the results are and how long it will take to get the results. It is a by -product of the cycle used to supply energy to the muscles. The kidneys are responsible for cleaning creatinine from the body and when they do not work properly, more of this compound begins to circulate in Blood. In the early stages of the kidney problem, the levels may be in the normal range, but eventually increase high enough to indicate that the kidneys do not work.

In some cases, people may also have high serum creatinine or muscle injury. Patients with high test results may be evaluated to avoid these options. The doctor would expect to see high levels in patients with kidney failure, kidney cancer and cardiovascular disease.

This test is relatively low, so it is attractive to a doctor who wants to work quickly to rule out the possibilities without spending a lot of money or exposing the patient invasive tests. Once serum creatinine is determined, the laboratory technician can use information to create the value of clearance creatinine, taking into account the age, height, height and gender of the patient. This values ​​can provide even more information about the kidney function.

One problem with the serum creatinine test is that people can experience kidney disease and the beginning of kidney damage,While the values ​​still fall within the normal range. Other values ​​on the metabolic panel may provide further information about the kidney function. Once the kidneys begin to function unusually, it is common to see other changes in the blood profile, because the kidneys are not able to express a wide range of waste products.