As a waste product, creatinine is filtered out of the blood by the kidneys and removed from the body in urine. The amount of creatinine formed daily is based on muscle mass, which varies with age, gender, and ethnicity. It is usually produced at a fairly constant rate in each person. Elevated creatinine can indicate kidney issues and should be evaluated with additional kidney-function testing; however, it is not an early marker for diagnosis of early disease and estimated GFR has become a more useful measurement.
Creatinine
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