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Kidney function tests tin help find signs of kidney illness early, when it's easier to treat. If y'all're at higher risk for kidney illness, your doc may recommend these tests to brand sure your kidneys are healthy and working correctly. Normal kidney role numbers can help rule out a kidney problem.

If you already have chronic kidney disease (CKD) or some other health status that can impairment your kidneys, your physician may apply these tests to keep an eye on how well your kidneys are doing.

Then what are normal kidney numbers? Read on to learn about the different types of kidney part tests, what's normal for each test and what your numbers mean.

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Your kidneys filter waste and extra water out of your bloodstream. Some of that waste so travels to your bladder, then y'all tin pee it out as urine. When your kidneys aren't working properly, information technology affects both your blood and your urine — so your doctor tin can look for signs of kidney issues with claret tests and urine tests.

Four of the common kidney part tests are:

Estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) examination
Claret urea nitrogen (BUN) test
Serum creatinine examination
Urine tests, including urine albumin

To help you understand your kidney test results, nosotros'll explicate how each test works and the normal levels for each exam.

What's a Normal Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR)?

The estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) test is a blood test that measures how well your kidneys are filtering. It does this by estimating how much blood passes through tiny filters in your kidneys (called glomeruli) in i minute.

Kickoff, your physician measures the level of creatinine (a waste product product your kidneys normally filter out) in your blood. Next, they use that number in a adding that as well factors in your historic period, race, gender, acme and weight. The outcome is a number that estimates how well your kidneys are able to filter waste out of your bloodstream.

Here's what GFR numbers mean:

90 or to a higher place is normal — that means you probably don't have kidney disease.
Below sixty means y'all probably take kidney disease.
Below 15 is a sign of severe kidney problems.

What Are Normal Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN) Levels?

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A blood urea nitrogen (BUN) test measures the corporeality of urea nitrogen in your blood. Your liver makes urea nitrogen when it breaks down protein from the foods you eat. And so the urea nitrogen floats in your bloodstream until your kidneys filter it out. So high BUN levels may mean your kidneys aren't working correctly.

BUN is measured in mg/dL (milligrams of urea nitrogen per deciliter of blood).

Normal BUN levels can range from six to 24 mg/dL. All the same, each lab that does the testing may apply a slightly different reference range for what's considered normal. And your doctor may consider other factors similar your age and full general health to decide what BUN level is normal for yous.
If your BUN levels are at the college terminate of this range (around 20 mg/dL or more than), this may be a sign of kidney issues — just there are also other things that can brand your BUN level rise, like eating a lot of protein.
If your BUN is much higher than the normal range (similar around 60 mg/dL), that's probably a sign of serious kidney problems.

Sometimes doctors combine the BUN and blood creatinine levels to develop a "BUN creatinine ratio." This ratio compares the amount of urea nitrogen in your blood to the amount of creatinine. Normal BUN creatinine ratios are between 10:1 and 20:1. If yours is exterior of this range, that'southward probably a sign of a kidney disorder.

What Are Normal Creatinine Levels?

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A serum (blood) creatinine test measures the level of creatinine in your blood. Your muscles make creatinine and it stays in your blood until your kidneys filter it out. High creatinine levels may be a sign that your kidneys aren't filtering too equally they should be.

Then what are normal serum creatinine levels? They're slightly different for men and women.

For men, normal serum creatinine is betwixt 0.7 and ane.3 mg/dL. A level of ane.4 or higher may be a sign of kidney bug.
For women, normal serum creatinine is between 0.6 to 1.i mg/dL. A level of 1.2 or higher may be a sign of kidney issues.

Your doctor may also cheque the amount of creatinine in your urine and compare information technology to the corporeality in your claret. This is called a creatinine clearance examination. To do this test, you lot'll normally have to collect your urine at home over 24 hours and return it to the doctor's office or a lab for testing.

What Are Urine Tests for Kidney Function?

Since your kidneys make urine, urine tests can be a practiced way to cheque for kidney problems. Your doc may accept you lot give a urine sample at their office, or they may ask you to collect all your urine for 24 hours and render it for testing.

Two types of kidney urine tests check for albumin — a protein that'due south normally in your blood. Healthy kidneys don't filter albumin out of your claret, so it shouldn't show upwardly in your urine. If y'all accept albumin in your urine, it may be a sign of kidney problems.

An albumin dipstick test checks for very small amounts of albumin in your urine. Your doctor will dip a strip of chemically treated newspaper into your urine sample. If there's albumin in the sample, the paper changes colors.
An albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) test compares the amount of albumin in your urine to the amount of creatinine. It's measured in mg/g (milligrams of albumin per gram of creatinine). A normal ACR is 30 mg/chiliad or lower. An ACR higher than 30 may be a sign of kidney problems.

Remember, if y'all take one examination that doesn't show normal kidney function numbers, don't panic. Lots of things can affect kidney function, and it doesn't necessarily mean that you have kidney disease. Your doctor tin apply your kidney role numbers along with other tests and exams to find out if you lot have kidney issues. And together, you tin brand a treatment plan to protect your kidneys.

Resource Links:

"Kidney Tests" via MedlinePlus.gov
"Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR) Test" via MedlinePlus.gov
"Blood Urea Nitrogen" via Mayo Clinic
"Creatinine Tests" via Mayo Clinic
"Microalbumin Test" via Mayo Dispensary
"Blood Urea Nitrogen" via University of Rochester Medical Eye
"Claret Urea Nitrogen (BUN) Test" via University of Michigan Wellness
"Tests to Measure Kidney Office, Damage and Detect Abnormalities" via National Kidney Foundation
"Albuminuria: Albumin in the Urine" via NIDDK (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)