Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsCreatinine LevelsInterpreting ResultsTestsSymptomsTreatment
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Creatinine Levels
Interpreting Results
Tests
Symptoms
Treatment
Creatinineis a natural waste product that accumulates in the bloodstream after a person uses their muscles. Healthykidneys(bean-shaped organs) filter creatinine out of the bloodstream, removing it from the body in urine.
Creatinine levels provide beneficial clues about kidney function and can be measured in the blood or urine. A high blood creatinine level and low urine creatinine level is often a sign of kidney injury or disease.
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This article defines a healthy creatinine level in adults and reviews the causes (including non-kidney-ones) of an abnormal creatinine level. Possible symptoms of high creatinine in the bloodstream are also discussed.
Creatinine in the Pediatric PopulationLike adults, creatinine levels are a valuable marker of kidney function in the pediatric population. However, the creatinine reference range differs from adults because, in babies and children, creatinine gradually increases with age as they gain more muscle mass (weight).
Creatinine in the Pediatric Population
Like adults, creatinine levels are a valuable marker of kidney function in the pediatric population. However, the creatinine reference range differs from adults because, in babies and children, creatinine gradually increases with age as they gain more muscle mass (weight).
Creatinine: What Levels Are Above Average?
For example, since creatinine is proportionate to muscle mass, older adults commonly have lower creatinine levels due to reduced muscle mass.
Likewise, creatine is present in organs and muscles of animals, so a high consumption of cooked meats increases creatinine levels.
Lastly, the reference range for creatinine values may vary slightly among laboratories. Always speak with a healthcare provider about individual test results.
Average Blood Creatinine
In adults with healthy kidney function, a healthy blood creatinine level for males is between0.7 to 1.3milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), and for females is between0.5 and 1.1mg/dL.The terms for sex or gender from the cited source are used.
High Blood CreatinineA high blood creatinine level may indicate kidney injury or disease.
High Blood Creatinine
A high blood creatinine level may indicate kidney injury or disease.
To evaluate kidney function, a healthcare provider uses the blood creatinine level to calculate a person’sestimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).
The eGFR is a formula that approximates the filtering abilities of the kidneys. In addition to a creatinine level, it incorporates a person’s age and sex.
In healthy adults, a normal eGFR is usually more than 90. An eGFR between 60 and 89 may indicate early-stage kidney disease, whereas an eGFR below 15 indicates kidney failure.
Stages of Kidney Disease and Treatment
Average Urine Creatinine
A urine creatinine test measures the level of creatinine in the urine. Similar to blood creatinine levels, factors such as age and muscle mass can affect the results of urine creatinine tests.
Often collected over 24 hours, urine creatinine levels typically range from500 to 2,000 milligrams per day (mg/day).
Low Urine CreatinineA low level of creatinine in the urine may indicate kidney injury or disease.
Low Urine Creatinine
A low level of creatinine in the urine may indicate kidney injury or disease.
To evaluate kidney function, urine creatinine may also be measured as part of a urine albumin-creatinine ratio. The urine albumin-creatinine ratio compares thealbuminlevel with the creatinine level in a urine sample.
Albumin is a protein that serves multiple bodily functions, including maintaining fluid within blood vessels and transporting various substances.
Albumin in the urine is a possible sign of kidney damage, as the filtering units of healthy kidneys do not allow it to leak out from the bloodstream.
A normal uACR isbelow 30 milligrams/gram (mg/g).A uACR level of 30 mg/g or higher suggests an increased risk for kidney disease.
How Albumin in the Urine Is a Possible Sign of Kidney Disease
Deciphering the Meaning of High Creatinine Levels
High creatinine levels are often due to a kidney-related problem, although in some cases, non-kidney-related causes, like diet or exercise, are the culprits.
Kidney-Related Causes
Most people have two kidneys. They are on either side of the spine, just above the waist and below the rib cage.
The kidneys perform numerous essential functions in the body, such as:
Elevated creatinine levels often indicate kidney disease, meaning the kidneys are damaged and cannot perform their necessary functions.
Acute kidney injury(AKI), also known as acute kidney failure, occurs when there is an abrupt and often temporary reduction or loss of kidney function.
The numerous causes of acute kidney failure can be organized into three categories:
What Is Acute Renal Failure?
Left untreated, the kidneys may nearly stop working altogether. At this point—calledend-stage renal disease (ESRD)—dialysisor akidney transplantis required to live.
The most common causes of CKD arediabetesandhypertension(high blood pressure).
While not a complete list, examples of other CKD causes include:
Non-Kidney-Related Causes
A high creatinine is not always a sign of a kidney problem because, as mentioned above, several factors can impact creatinine levels.
Scenarios linked to a non-kidney-related “high creatinine” level (both in the blood and urine) include:
How Do You Know If Your Creatinine Levels Are High?
Since high creatinine levels do not generally cause symptoms, most people find out they have a high creatinine level after obtaining a routine blood test called abasic metabolic panel(BMP).
The BMP measures blood glucose (sugar), calcium, sodium, potassium, carbon dioxide, chloride,blood urea nitrogen(BUN) and creatinine.
Symptoms Associated With High Blood Creatinine Levels
Many people with high blood creatinine levels have no symptoms.
If the elevated creatinine levels are due to kidney disease, symptoms often develop when kidney function deteriorates enough to allow fluid and waste products to build up within the body.
For acute kidney failure, this may be hours to days, depending on the underlying cause.
Common symptoms of kidney disease include:
With CKD, long-term complications develop as the kidneys become more and more damaged.
Some of these complications include high blood pressure,anemia(low red blood cell count), bone weakness, and an increased risk ofheart diseaseandstroke.
Complications of Chronic Kidney Disease
What Happens Next: Lowering High Creatinine Levels
Lowering high creatinine levels entails first addressing the underlying cause.
This may mean seeing anephrologist(a doctor specializing in kidney health) if kidney disease is suspected.
Thetreatment of kidney diseasehas several goals. Key ones include:
Likewise, if elevated creatinine levels are from lifestyle factors, such as eating a high-protein diet, modifying your behaviors (under the guidance of a healthcare provider) might be reasonable.
Lastly, staying hydrated, avoiding smoking, and maintaining an average body weight are healthy strategies for optimizing kidney health and creatinine levels.
Summary
Creatinine is produced during regular muscle use. It is a marker of kidney function because the kidneys remove it from the body through urine. A high blood creatinine level often indicates an acute or chronic kidney problem.
Numerous factors, including age, sex, body size, diet, and activity, influence creatinine levels. As such, a high creatinine level is sometimes due to non-kidney-related causes like eating large amounts of cooked meats or vigorous exercise that leads to muscle breakdown.
High creatinine levels can be detected on a routine blood test (a basic metabolic panel) and often do not cause symptoms unless a person has acute kidney failure or is in the later stages of chronic kidney disease.
Lowering elevated blood creatinine levels involves treating the underlying cause—for example, managing kidney disease. It’s essential to discuss next steps with a healthcare provider if you have a high creatinine level.
19 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Chuang GT, Tsai IJ, Tsau YK.Serum creatinine reference limits in pediatric population-a single center electronic health record-based database in Taiwan.Front Pediatr. 2021;9:793446. doi:10.3389/fped.2021.793446Asif AA, Hussain H, Chatterjee T.Extraordinary creatinine level: a case report.Cureus. 2020;12(7):e9076. doi:10.7759/cureus.9076Weinstein JR, Anderson S.The aging kidney: physiological changes.Adv Chronic Kidney Dis. 2010;17(4):302-307. doi:10.1053/j.ackd.2010.05.002Hoste L, Deiteren K, Pottel H, Callewaert N, Martens F.Routine serum creatinine measurements: how well do we perform?BMC Nephrol. 2015;16:21. doi:10.1186/s12882-015-0012-xUniversity of Rochester Medical Center.Creatinine (blood).National Kidney Foundation.Kidney tests.The Renal Association.About eGFR.National Kidney Foundation.Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).Kidney function tests. In: Rifai N, Chiu RWK, Young I, Burnham CD, Wittwer CT, eds.Tietz Textbook of Laboratory Medicine. 7th ed. St Louis, MO: Elsevier; 2023:chap 34.Ward ES, Gelinas D, Dreesen E, et al.Clinical significance of serum albumin and implications of FcRn inhibitor treatment in IgG-mediated autoimmune disorders.Front Immunol. 2022;13:892534. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.892534Ren F, Li M, Xu H, Qin X, Teng Y.Urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio within the normal range and risk of hypertension in the general population: a meta-analysis.J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2021;23(7):1284-1290. doi:10.1111/jch.14263Turgut F, Awad AS, Abdel-Rahman EM.Acute kidney injury: medical causes and pathogenesis.J Clin Med. 2023;12(1):375. doi:10.3390/jcm12010375National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Causes of chronic kidney disease.Nair S, O’Brien SV, Hayden K, et al.Effect of a cooked meat meal on serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate in diabetes-related kidney disease.Diabetes Care. 2014;37(2):483-487. doi:10.2337/dc13-1770Williamson L, New D.How the use of creatine supplements can elevate serum creatinine in the absence of underlying kidney pathology.BMJ Case Rep. 2014;2014:bcr2014204754. doi:10.1136/bcr-2014-204754MedlinePlus.Creatinine test.Brigham Young University.Kidney function tests.Webster AC, Nagler EV, Morton RL, Masson P.Chronic kidney disease.Lancet. 2017;389(10075):1238-1252. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(16)32064-5Chen TK, Knicely DH, Grams ME.Chronic kidney disease diagnosis and management: a review.JAMA. 2019;322(13):1294-1304. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.14745
19 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Chuang GT, Tsai IJ, Tsau YK.Serum creatinine reference limits in pediatric population-a single center electronic health record-based database in Taiwan.Front Pediatr. 2021;9:793446. doi:10.3389/fped.2021.793446Asif AA, Hussain H, Chatterjee T.Extraordinary creatinine level: a case report.Cureus. 2020;12(7):e9076. doi:10.7759/cureus.9076Weinstein JR, Anderson S.The aging kidney: physiological changes.Adv Chronic Kidney Dis. 2010;17(4):302-307. doi:10.1053/j.ackd.2010.05.002Hoste L, Deiteren K, Pottel H, Callewaert N, Martens F.Routine serum creatinine measurements: how well do we perform?BMC Nephrol. 2015;16:21. doi:10.1186/s12882-015-0012-xUniversity of Rochester Medical Center.Creatinine (blood).National Kidney Foundation.Kidney tests.The Renal Association.About eGFR.National Kidney Foundation.Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).Kidney function tests. In: Rifai N, Chiu RWK, Young I, Burnham CD, Wittwer CT, eds.Tietz Textbook of Laboratory Medicine. 7th ed. St Louis, MO: Elsevier; 2023:chap 34.Ward ES, Gelinas D, Dreesen E, et al.Clinical significance of serum albumin and implications of FcRn inhibitor treatment in IgG-mediated autoimmune disorders.Front Immunol. 2022;13:892534. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.892534Ren F, Li M, Xu H, Qin X, Teng Y.Urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio within the normal range and risk of hypertension in the general population: a meta-analysis.J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2021;23(7):1284-1290. doi:10.1111/jch.14263Turgut F, Awad AS, Abdel-Rahman EM.Acute kidney injury: medical causes and pathogenesis.J Clin Med. 2023;12(1):375. doi:10.3390/jcm12010375National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Causes of chronic kidney disease.Nair S, O’Brien SV, Hayden K, et al.Effect of a cooked meat meal on serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate in diabetes-related kidney disease.Diabetes Care. 2014;37(2):483-487. doi:10.2337/dc13-1770Williamson L, New D.How the use of creatine supplements can elevate serum creatinine in the absence of underlying kidney pathology.BMJ Case Rep. 2014;2014:bcr2014204754. doi:10.1136/bcr-2014-204754MedlinePlus.Creatinine test.Brigham Young University.Kidney function tests.Webster AC, Nagler EV, Morton RL, Masson P.Chronic kidney disease.Lancet. 2017;389(10075):1238-1252. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(16)32064-5Chen TK, Knicely DH, Grams ME.Chronic kidney disease diagnosis and management: a review.JAMA. 2019;322(13):1294-1304. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.14745
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Chuang GT, Tsai IJ, Tsau YK.Serum creatinine reference limits in pediatric population-a single center electronic health record-based database in Taiwan.Front Pediatr. 2021;9:793446. doi:10.3389/fped.2021.793446Asif AA, Hussain H, Chatterjee T.Extraordinary creatinine level: a case report.Cureus. 2020;12(7):e9076. doi:10.7759/cureus.9076Weinstein JR, Anderson S.The aging kidney: physiological changes.Adv Chronic Kidney Dis. 2010;17(4):302-307. doi:10.1053/j.ackd.2010.05.002Hoste L, Deiteren K, Pottel H, Callewaert N, Martens F.Routine serum creatinine measurements: how well do we perform?BMC Nephrol. 2015;16:21. doi:10.1186/s12882-015-0012-xUniversity of Rochester Medical Center.Creatinine (blood).National Kidney Foundation.Kidney tests.The Renal Association.About eGFR.National Kidney Foundation.Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).Kidney function tests. In: Rifai N, Chiu RWK, Young I, Burnham CD, Wittwer CT, eds.Tietz Textbook of Laboratory Medicine. 7th ed. St Louis, MO: Elsevier; 2023:chap 34.Ward ES, Gelinas D, Dreesen E, et al.Clinical significance of serum albumin and implications of FcRn inhibitor treatment in IgG-mediated autoimmune disorders.Front Immunol. 2022;13:892534. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.892534Ren F, Li M, Xu H, Qin X, Teng Y.Urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio within the normal range and risk of hypertension in the general population: a meta-analysis.J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2021;23(7):1284-1290. doi:10.1111/jch.14263Turgut F, Awad AS, Abdel-Rahman EM.Acute kidney injury: medical causes and pathogenesis.J Clin Med. 2023;12(1):375. doi:10.3390/jcm12010375National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Causes of chronic kidney disease.Nair S, O’Brien SV, Hayden K, et al.Effect of a cooked meat meal on serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate in diabetes-related kidney disease.Diabetes Care. 2014;37(2):483-487. doi:10.2337/dc13-1770Williamson L, New D.How the use of creatine supplements can elevate serum creatinine in the absence of underlying kidney pathology.BMJ Case Rep. 2014;2014:bcr2014204754. doi:10.1136/bcr-2014-204754MedlinePlus.Creatinine test.Brigham Young University.Kidney function tests.Webster AC, Nagler EV, Morton RL, Masson P.Chronic kidney disease.Lancet. 2017;389(10075):1238-1252. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(16)32064-5Chen TK, Knicely DH, Grams ME.Chronic kidney disease diagnosis and management: a review.JAMA. 2019;322(13):1294-1304. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.14745
Chuang GT, Tsai IJ, Tsau YK.Serum creatinine reference limits in pediatric population-a single center electronic health record-based database in Taiwan.Front Pediatr. 2021;9:793446. doi:10.3389/fped.2021.793446
Asif AA, Hussain H, Chatterjee T.Extraordinary creatinine level: a case report.Cureus. 2020;12(7):e9076. doi:10.7759/cureus.9076
Weinstein JR, Anderson S.The aging kidney: physiological changes.Adv Chronic Kidney Dis. 2010;17(4):302-307. doi:10.1053/j.ackd.2010.05.002
Hoste L, Deiteren K, Pottel H, Callewaert N, Martens F.Routine serum creatinine measurements: how well do we perform?BMC Nephrol. 2015;16:21. doi:10.1186/s12882-015-0012-x
University of Rochester Medical Center.Creatinine (blood).
National Kidney Foundation.Kidney tests.
The Renal Association.About eGFR.
National Kidney Foundation.Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).
Kidney function tests. In: Rifai N, Chiu RWK, Young I, Burnham CD, Wittwer CT, eds.Tietz Textbook of Laboratory Medicine. 7th ed. St Louis, MO: Elsevier; 2023:chap 34.
Ward ES, Gelinas D, Dreesen E, et al.Clinical significance of serum albumin and implications of FcRn inhibitor treatment in IgG-mediated autoimmune disorders.Front Immunol. 2022;13:892534. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.892534
Ren F, Li M, Xu H, Qin X, Teng Y.Urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio within the normal range and risk of hypertension in the general population: a meta-analysis.J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2021;23(7):1284-1290. doi:10.1111/jch.14263
Turgut F, Awad AS, Abdel-Rahman EM.Acute kidney injury: medical causes and pathogenesis.J Clin Med. 2023;12(1):375. doi:10.3390/jcm12010375
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Causes of chronic kidney disease.
Nair S, O’Brien SV, Hayden K, et al.Effect of a cooked meat meal on serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate in diabetes-related kidney disease.Diabetes Care. 2014;37(2):483-487. doi:10.2337/dc13-1770
Williamson L, New D.How the use of creatine supplements can elevate serum creatinine in the absence of underlying kidney pathology.BMJ Case Rep. 2014;2014:bcr2014204754. doi:10.1136/bcr-2014-204754
MedlinePlus.Creatinine test.
Brigham Young University.Kidney function tests.
Webster AC, Nagler EV, Morton RL, Masson P.Chronic kidney disease.Lancet. 2017;389(10075):1238-1252. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(16)32064-5
Chen TK, Knicely DH, Grams ME.Chronic kidney disease diagnosis and management: a review.JAMA. 2019;322(13):1294-1304. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.14745
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