Early detection and treatment of kidney disease is critical to keeping kidney disease from progressing on to kidney failure. Simple screening tests for kidney disease can help identify many kidney disease early in the disease process.
- Blood Pressure Check: In addition to being an important cause of kidney disease, high blood pressure is also a common complication of kidney failure, regardless of the cause. People with high blood pressure are at much higher risk for kidney disease.
- Dipstick Urinalysis: Signs of damage from kidney disease may be found in the urine. The urine dipsticks is an excellent tool to screen for blood and protein in the urine. It is also useful for assessing for signs of a urinary tract infection.
- Creatinine (Cr): The most widely used test to assess kidney function. The kidneys remove creatinine from the blood and concentrate it in the urine. If the kidneys are failing, blood levels will rise.
- Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR): Currently, the best way to quantify how much your blood is being “cleansed” of all toxins, not just creatinine. Using your creatinine, age, sex, and race, your kidney function can be more accurately estimated.
