Creatinine blood test
A test that helps determine whether the kidneys are functioning normally. The kidneys maintain the blood creatinine in a normal range. Creatinine has been found to be a fairly reliable indicator of kidney function.
As the kidneys become impaired for any reason, the creatinine level in the blood will rise due to poor clearance by the kidneys. Abnormally high levels of creatinine thus warn of possible malfunction or failure of the kidneys. It is for this reason that standard blood tests routinely check the amount of creatinine in the blood. A more precise measure of the kidney function can be estimated by calculating how much creatinine is cleared from the body by the kidneys and it is referred to creatinine clearance.
“Creatinine” is derived from the Greek word “kreas,” meaning “flesh.” The suffix “-ine” denotes a chemical substance.
Read Also:
- Creatinine clearance test
Creatinine clearance test: A test that helps determine whether the kidneys are functioning normally. Specifically, the creatinine-clearance test gauges the rate at which a waste, creatinine, is “cleared” from the blood by the kidneys. Creatinine is produced from the metabolism of protein as when muscles burn energy. Most creatinine is then filtered out of the […]
- Crepitus
Crepitus: A clinical sign in medicine that is characterized by a peculiar crackling, crinkly, or grating feeling or sound under the skin, around the lungs, or in the joints. Crepitus in soft tissues is often due to gas, most often air, that has penetrated and infiltrated an area where it should not normally be (for […]
- Cretinism
Cretinism: Congenital hypothyroidism (underactivity of the thyroid gland at birth), which results in growth retardation, developmental delay, and other abnormal features. Cretinism can be due to deficiency of iodine in the mother’s diet during pregnancy.
- CREST syndrome
CREST syndrome: A limited form of scleroderma, a disease of connective tissue that involves the formation of scar tissue (fibrosis) in the skin and sometimes also in other organs of the body. ‘CREST’ is an acronym for Calcinosis (the formation of tiny deposits of calcium in the skin), Raynaud’s phenomenon (spasm of the tiny artery […]
- Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)
There is currently no single diagnostic test for CJD. When CJD is suspected, the first concern is to rule out treatable forms of dementia such as encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) or chronic meningitis. A neurological examination and spinal tap are often performed to rule out more common causes of dementia. An electroencephalogram (EEG) to […]