Equations used to predict glomerular filtration rate perform poorly in kidney transplant recipients

Paul E de Jong

This article has no abstract so we have provided the first paragraph of the full text.

At present, much attention is focused on detecting impaired kidney function, both to identify individuals with asymptomatic CKD,¹ and to monitor subjects with known renal disease, whether in native or transplanted kidneys. The K/DOQI guidelines helped to clarify this issue by defining five stages of CKD, based upon measurement of GFR.² Because such measurement requires cumbersome urine collections, however, formulae have been developed to estimate GFR based on a plasma creatinine measurement. Plasma creatinine is not only dependent on the excretion of creatinine from the body but also on the production of creatinine by the muscles. Therefore, these formulae take into account not only plasma creatinine, but also include factors related to muscle mass, such as gender, age, race, and in some cases also weight. The most widely used formulae for estimating GFR are the Cockcroft–Gault equation and the MDRD equation. When applying these formulae, we should realize that they are derived from data obtained in specific diseased populations of a specific age, and frequently within a specific GFR range.

ARTICLE NAVIGATION - ARTICLE TOOLS

• Full text
• Download PDF
• Send to a friend
• PDA services
• Permissions

ISSUE NAVIGATION - THIS ISSUE

• Table of Contents
• Previous article
• Next article