What is creatinine?
Creatinine is formed in the muscles when your body breaks down creatine phosphate (the muscles' energy reserve) and gives the body's muscles extra energy during high loads. Muscle mass, the proportion of muscle in your body, determines how much creatinine is formed and therefore the value can vary from person to person.
Why is creatinine analyzed?
By analyzing the creatinine level in the blood, you can see how your kidneys are doing. The kidneys have the task of filtering creatinine, which is then carried out in the urine. You can also do a creatinine test before treatment with certain drugs.
Creatinine in diet
If you have eaten a lot of meat, especially cooked meat, your creatinine level may temporarily increase.
What can low levels of creatinine mean?
Low levels of creatinine are usually nothing serious, sometimes it can be due to little muscle mass or pregnancy when more blood forms in the body and more creatinine is filtered out through the kidneys. The level then usually rises to a normal level again after delivery.
Different diseases can also cause low levels of creatinine, but then there are usually clearer symptoms that can help a doctor determine what type of disease or condition it could be.
What can elevated levels of creatinine mean?
Elevated levels of creatinine can be due to the fact that you have a large muscle mass, take drugs that can affect your kidneys which in turn cause your creatinine level to rise or that you are suffering from dehydration and dehydration. If you have eaten meat before sampling, especially cooked meat, you may have elevated levels.
Another reason could be that there has been a blockage in the urinary tract, such as with kidney stones or severe prostate enlargement. Elevated creatinine levels can also indicate that there is something with the kidneys that is not working as it should. However, the kidneys may be affected even if the creatinine value is within the reference range.
Symptoms of reduced kidney function
The symptoms of chronic kidney failure, or chronic kidney failure, develop slowly. They can only appear when kidney function becomes so impaired that waste products begin to accumulate in the blood, then they can express themselves like this:
- loss of appetite
- nausea
- vomiting
- fatigue
- itching
- impaired muscle power.
