Week 3: Renal Tests Flashcards
What are 3 things that renal function testing provides info regarding and what does it require?
Renal blood flow
Glomerular filtration rate (GFR)
Tubular function
Requires: analysis of plasma/serum &/ urine samples
(slide 2)
How is renal function testing imperfect (3)?
- Various factors (besides renal parenchyma damage) can influence results
- Localized & generalized damage
- Temp. & permanent malfunction
(slide 2)
Define renal disease?
Presence of histologic lesions in kidney, but does not specify any degree of renal dysfunction
(slide 3)
Define renal failure?
75% of total nephron population has become non-functional, but does not necessarily imply underlying histologic lesions
(slide 4)
What are some examples of renal function tests to evaluate clearance vs. tubular function?
Clearance tests: BUN, serum creatinine, creatinine clearance, albumin creatinine ratio
Tubular func.: fractional excretion of Na
(slide 5)
What is the measurement of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) based on?
The concept of clearance: determination of the volume of plasma from which a substance is removed by glomerular filtration during it’s passage through the kidney
(slide 6)
What is essential to renal function and the most frequently performed renal function?
GFR!
slide 6
Describe the ideal substance to measure GFR (6)?
Freely filtered at the glomeruli Not bound to plasma proteins or metabolized Non-toxic & excreted only by the kidneys Not reabsorbed/secreted by renal tubules Stable in blood & urine Easily measured
(slide 7)
What does BUN stand for, what is it derived from, & what is its filtration/reabsorption/clearance rate(s)?
Blood urea nitrogen
Derived from protein catabolism via urea cycle in liver (AA -> NH3 -> Urea -> circulation)
Filtered by glomerulus (40% reabsorbed)
Clearance ~ 60% of true GFR
(slide 8)
How would you test BUN and what does it measure (3)?
Serum/plasma testing (part of CMP or BMP)
Evaluates liver func., indirectly measures renal func., rough indicator of GFR & renal blood flow
(slide 10)
What factors can interfere w/BUN (6)?
- Protein intake
- Muscle mass
- Pregnancy (dec. due to hemodilution & inc. GFR)
- Hydration level
- Liver dx dec. production
- Drugs
(slide 11)
What is the normal adult level of BUN, the critical level, & causes for dec. BUN?
10-20 mg/dl (elderly higher)
Critical: >100 mg/dl (serious impairment of renal func.)
Dec. values: fluid overload, malnutrition, severe liver dx
(slide 12)
What is azotemia? What could it indicate? What must you distinguish btwn?
Inc. concentration of non-protein nitrogenous waste produces in the blood (i.e. urea, creatinine, BUN)
Could indicate: renal dx or other conditions
Distinguish: pre-renal, renal, & post-renal azotemia
(slide 13)
What are some pre-renal causes of inc. BUN (6)? What % of acute renal failure is this type?
55% = acute renal failure (sudden/severe drop in BP or interruption of blood flow to kidneys from injury/illness)
Low blood volume, shock, burns, dehydration CHF, MI GI bleed Too much protein intake High protein catabolism, starvation Sepsis
(slide 14, 17)
What are some renal causes of inc. BUN? What % of acute renal failure is this type?
40% of acute renal failure (direct damage to kidneys from inflamm., toxins, drugs, infx, dec. blood supply)
Renal dx (i.e. glomerulonephritis, pyelonephritis, acute tubular necrosis) Nephrotoxic drugs
(Slide 15, 17)
What are some post-renal causes of inc. BUN (2)? What % of acute renal failure is this type?
5% of acute renal failure (sudden obstruction of urine flow due to enlarged prostate, kidney stones, bladder tumor, injury)
Obstruction of ureters (i.e. stones, tumors, congenital)
Bladder outlet obstruction (i.e. prostatic hypertrophy, cancer, congenital)
(slide 16, 17)
What is a more stable marker than BUN? What does its value depend on?
Serum creatinine (catabolic product of creatinine phosphate from skeletal mm)
Depends on: muscle mass, which fluctuates very little unless muscle-wasting pathology exists
(slide 18)
What does the kidney do w/ serum creatinine?
Kidneys almost completely filter creatine, but its secreted by prox. tubule as well.
(slide 19)
When do creatinine levels increase in relation to BUN levels? What do elevated levels suggest?
Who might normally have lower levels?
Creatinine increases later than BUN
Elevations suggest chronic dx process & parallel BUN inc.
Elderly & young children have norm. low lvls (reduced muscle mass)
(slide 20)
What is the norm. serum creatinine range? What are they used to diagnose?
Norm. male: 0.6-1.2 mg/dl
Norm female: 0.5-1.1 mg/dl
Diagnose impaired renal func. (minimally affected by liver func., unlike BUN)
(slide 22)
What is the relationship btwn BUN, creatinine, & % of functional nephrons? What does that mean about it’s screening test ability?
Rectangular hyperbola:
Lrg. changes in GFR ‘early’ in renal dx cause sml. changes in BUN/Creatinine
Sml. changes in GFR late in renal dx cause BIG changes in BUN/Creatinine
*Not a good screening test
(slide 23)
What dx processes could be wrong if the BUN/Creatinine ratio is 10-20:1 (in renal azotemia) (3)?
- chronic diffuse bilat. kidney dx or damage
- acute tubular necrosis
- Severe acute glomerular damage
(slide 24)
What dx processes could be wrong if the BUN/Creatinine ratio is >20:1 (in pre-renal azotemia) (6)?
If… dec. blood volume or renal circulation
then… shock, dehydration, MI/CHF
If… inc. protein intake or catabolism
then… high protein tube feedings, GI hemorrhage, starvation
(slide 24)
What is the association btwn urea/creatinine & protein in urine?
Pre-renal:
Disproportionate rise in Urea
Protein uncommon in urine
Renal:
Urea/creatinine rise together
Protein present on dipstick test
(slide 25)
What is the eGFR?
estimated GFR: ability to kidneys to filter blood, calculated using creatinine, pts sex, & age (MDRD equation)
GFR goes down, creatinine goes up
(slide 26)
When could the eGFR be inaccurate?
Vegetarian, pregnant, malnourished, >70 or 60 ml/min/1.73 m^3
(slide 27)
What would you use instead of eGFR for a more accurate estimate of glomerular filtration?
Creatinine clearance
slide 27
What does creatinine clearance require? What info does it provide? What are values corrected for?
Requires: 24/hr urine collection & blood draw (both samples analyzed for creatinine)
Provides: quantitative measure of rate at which creatinine is removed from blood (ml/min)
Corrected for: body surface area (BSA), need pts height/weight
(slide 28)
Be able to instruct a pt how to do a 24 hr urine sample?
See slide 29 for instructions :-)
What does creatinine clearance provide a good estimate of? When can it be incorrect?
Estimates GFR
Over-estimates by 10% due to tubular secretion of creatinine.
If GFR dec. to <30% of norm, CC = invalid (secreted fraction is larger proportion of total urinary creatinine)
(slide 30)
What is a normal value for creatinine clearance?
Male: 90-138 ml/min
Female: 80-125 ml/min
*values dec. 6.5 ml/min each decade of life after 20 yrs (decline in GFR)
(slide 31)
What are interfering factors with creatinine clearance (4)?
Exercise (inc. serum creat.)
Pregnancy (inc. urinary creat.)
Incomplete urine collection gives false low value
Drugs
(slide 32)
What is cystatin C? What does it estimate? What is its normal range?
Filtered by glomerular memb. & metabolized by prox. tubules.
Estimates: GFR independent of gender, age, race, muscle mass, cirrhosis (no height/weight correction)
*better than serum creatinine
Normal: 0.54-1.55 mg/L
(slide 33)
What are SSx of kidney failure?
Loss of appetite, N/V, edema, low back (flank) pain, dec. urine output, fatigue
(Slide 34)