Kidney issues

[gja1000]

Lindsay, I'm sure they have checked you for diabetes - a fasting blood glucose - right? That is the most common cause of microalbumine. Your elevated microalbumin is indicative of some kidney damage - and as you know, you have some. As long as the creatinine is within normal limits, you are OK. But they are right, you need to be checked frequently. There are many things that can cause your microalbumin to go up like illness, antibiotics, high blood pressure (is yours normal?) heck maybe even stress (not sure about that one). I have kidney damage too from having multiple UTIs when I was little. I don't even know if they check my microalbumin - I've never had a doc tell me anything about mine - I'll have to look at my next lab report. They keep an eye on my creatinine and BUN (blood urea nitrogen) and they are at the upper limits of normal - but OK.

The thing is that you can live with LOTS of kidney damage and be perfectly fine. Gary's kidney function is only 23% of normal and he is fine. You are OK until your kidney function gets down to 15%. So it takes LOTS of damage to really cause problems. The thing is you just can't let it progress and that is why they have to check it frequently. As long as you get your tests when they tell you to, and stay on top of any changes, you should be OK.

OK, Gary sees his kidney doc every 3 months and has blood drawn to check his kidneys. I was curious to see if he gets a microalbumin test and he does not - but it could be that his kidneys are already so damaged, they don't bother with it. The tests he does get are:

Urine protein
Urine creatinine
Urine creatinine clearance
blood creatinine
BUN

[Lindsey]

I just let out the biggest sigh of releif! (Did you hear it from Texas?)

Thanks so much! I was worried, I got my parents worried, I haven't been able to think of anything else all day! Some of the websites said if you're getting close to 300 you're on a fast track to kidney failure which will probably occur within 5 years Sometimes the internet is a bad thing.

Before, I had been getting tests 3 or 4 times per year and seeing the kidney specialist every 2 years. I think I only went back to him once though and things were better so I haven't seen him again. I guess if things get bad, I will get another referral.

My next test does not have creatinine marked off, but it has

Calcium
Vitamin D
Microalbumin
Hs-CRP/GFR

I had the last test taken on Jan 3rd so I'm trying to take myself back and think of what I might have had or done... I had some drinks at Christmas with my family and I drank some wine in the hot tub on New Years, and I know alcohol isn't the best for kidneys so that might have affected it. I don't drink much these days at all. I wasn't eating really healthy that week either. I am sure I also had a bit of a cold then too.

I guess I'll just try to change my diet a bit and get some more exercise and take my vitamins and hope for the best!

[Lindsey]

Originally Posted by Lindsey

I just let out the biggest sigh of releif! (Did you hear it from Texas?)

Thanks so much! I was worried, I got my parents worried, I haven't been able to think of anything else all day! Some of the websites said if you're getting close to 300 you're on a fast track to kidney failure which will probably occur within 5 years Sometimes the internet is a bad thing.

Before, I had been getting tests 3 or 4 times per year and seeing the kidney specialist every 2 years. I think I only went back to him once though and things were better so I haven't seen him again. I guess if things get bad, I will get another referral.

My next test does not have creatinine marked off, but it has

Calcium
Vitamin D
Microalbumin
Hs-CRP/GFR

I had the last test taken on Jan 3rd so I'm trying to take myself back and think of what I might have had or done... I had some drinks at Christmas with my family and I drank some wine in the hot tub on New Years, and I know alcohol isn't the best for kidneys so that might have affected it. I don't drink much these days at all. I wasn't eating really healthy that week either. I am sure I also had a bit of a cold then too.

I guess I'll just try to change my diet a bit and get some more exercise and take my vitamins and hope for the best!

Sorry that should say ESR... dang doctor hand writing! It's a little bit worse than the engineer hand writing I need to decipher every day

[gja1000]

You shouldn't worry abut it too much, but do keep up with the tests because you could have something going on - or it could be pretty much nothing. Kidney function is really funny - it is affected by many things - over exercising can cause what looks like kidney failure. On the other hand, you could have some disease process that is damaging your kidneys, but I would think that is highly unlikely. The best thing is to take care of yourself, stay hydrated, eat right, watch your blood pressure and your blood sugar, and monitor the kidneys closely.

[Lindsey]

Thanks Gayle. When I was younger I was sent to tons of specialists to figure out what was going on. I don't even remember what they all were but I know one was lupus... I think I went to at least 10 specialists for different things to rule them out. In the end, the kidney specialist figured I had some sort of disease or disorder that I can't remember the name of anymore. When it got better I figured it was over with. I still get tests constantly though. I see my doctor tons because he wants to keep up on everything! Everytime I see him I walk away with another test to have done.

[JJJ]

Oh Lindsey I'm so sorry you got frighten but your right sometimes internet is too much. I'm sure you will be just fine.

But thanks for this post I learned something new.

[gja1000]

Yes, Lupus is one of the diseases that can cause microalbumin to be high. I'm really glad that they are on top of it! I wouldn't worry, but I would definitely be alert to any issues.