Kidney Disease Markers

• eGFR stands for estimated glomerular filtration rate. Each kidney contains about one million tiny filters called glomeruli which are made up of blood vessels. How well the kidneys are functioning can be measured by estimating how much blood the glomeruli filter in a minute. The calculation of eGFR is based on the amount of creatinine, a waste product, found in a blood sample. The higher the level of creatinine, the lower the eGFR.

Kidney disease is considered to be present when eGFR is less than 60 milliliters per minute.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommend that eGFR be calculated from serum creatinine at least once a year in all people with diabetes.

• Urine albumin. Urine albumin is measured by comparing the amount of albumin to the amount of creatinine in a single urine sample. When the kidneys are healthy, the urine will contain large amounts of creatinine but almost no albumin. Even a small increase in the ratio of albumin to creatinine is a sign of kidney damage.

Kidney disease is present when urine contains more than 30 milligrams of albumin per gram of creatinine, with or without decreased eGFR.

The NIH recommends annual assessment of urine albumin excretion to assess kidney damage in all people with type 2 diabetes and people who have had type 1 diabetes for 5 years or more.