Creatinine urine what is it

For a creatinine urine test: Your health care provider will ask you to collect all urine during a hour period. A hour urine sample test generally includes the following steps: Empty your bladder in the morning and flush that urine away. Record the time. For the next 24 hours, save all your urine passed in the container provided. Store your urine container in the refrigerator or a cooler with ice. Return the sample container to your health provider's office or the laboratory as instructed.

Will I need to do anything to prepare for the test? Are there any risks to the test? There is no risk to having a urine test. What do the results mean? These include: Autoimmune diseases Bacterial infection of the kidneys Blocked urinary tract Heart failure Complications of diabetes But abnormal results don't always mean kidney disease.

The following conditions can temporarily raise creatinine levels: Pregnancy Intense exercise A diet high in red meat Certain medicines. Some medicines have side effects that raise creatinine levels. If you have questions about your results, talk to your health care provider. Is there anything else I need to know about a creatinine test? References Hinkle J, Cheever K. Creatinine, Serum; p. Hinkle J, Cheever K. Skip to main content. You are here Home » A to Z » Creatinine. What is creatinine?

What is a normal level of creatinine? That depends on your age, race, gender, and body size. Can my healthcare provider know if my kidneys are working properly by looking at how much creatinine is in my blood? You may have kidney disease if your GFR number is: Below 60 for three months Above 60 with signs of kidney damage having protein in the urine is a sign of kidney damage Do I need any other tests?

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The test can help your doctor evaluate how well your kidneys are functioning. This is useful for diagnosing or ruling out kidney disease and other conditions affecting the kidneys. Your doctor may use a random urine sample to test for creatinine. The creatinine in your urine can vary a lot based on diet, exercise, and hydration levels, so a spot check is not as helpful. As the name suggests, this creatinine urine test measures the amount of urine produced in a day.

The hour volume test is noninvasive and involves only the collection of urine. Failure to follow instructions could lead to false results, which means you may have to repeat the test. There are natural variations in creatinine output due to age and body mass. The more muscular you are, the higher your range will be. Results are dependent on the proper collection of your urine sample. Normal urine creatinine values generally range from to 2, milligrams mg per 24 hours for males, and to 1, mg per 24 hours for females, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Creatinine values that fall outside the normal range may be an indication of:. You should discuss your results with your doctor. Depending on your results, your doctor may order a serum creatinine test. In this article, we take a closer look at the urine creatinine test, including its uses, the procedure, and what the results mean. Creatinine levels vary throughout the day.

Due to this, a doctor will often order a 24 hour urine sample test to get a more accurate measure of how much creatinine the kidneys are clearing. For this type of urine test, the individual will need to collect all of the urine that they produce over 24 hours. Doctors will then send the urine sample to a laboratory for analysis. If the amount of creatinine in the urine does not fall within the normal range, this could indicate that the kidneys are not functioning properly.

This dysfunction may be due to kidney damage, kidney disease, or other health issues that can affect kidney function. This variation means that urine levels are a poor indicator of kidney problems. If a person has high creatinine levels in their urine, a doctor may need to order further tests to determine the cause.

To test for serum creatinine, doctors often use the glomerular filtration rate GFR. Higher levels may not necessarily indicate a health issue, but they can sometimes be due to kidney problems.

According to the University of Rochester Medical Center , normal ranges are as follows:. However, the reference ranges may vary among laboratories. However, high levels do not always indicate a problem.