Kidney Function tests worrying

[WaitingForLittleSunflower]

Hi, really hoping someone can help. I have recently had some blood results which show a dramatic decline in my kidney function from my last blood tests 12 months ago.

Serum creatine increased from 60 to 92

Serum inorganic phosphate increased from 1.4 to 1.49 and is above upper limit

Serum albumin increased from 41 to 46 and is now at upper limit

EGFRcreat reduced from over 90 to 68 which is reduction of 22 which is classed as rapid..average loss is 1 a year.. also 68 is very low for my age

I'm 37 and in good health, don't drink much, don't smoke, healthy weight ans diet. I have been extremely stressed and anxious for the past couple of months so wondering if that has had an impact?

I also suffer from health anxiety so this has made me so so scared. I am convinced it is something terrible so any comments or advice would be much appreciated!

I am have been referred for a follow up blood test and urine sample but I am feeling so terrified with the thought of what it could be.

Thanks so much in advance

OP - I'm probably not going to be much help but hopefully will bump your thread for someone more knowledgeable to see it ...

Identical thing happened to me over a decade ago. Kidney function dropped from 90+ to sixty something. It triggered an AKI (acute kidney incident) in the lab.

My GP said you need to have 3 tests, months apart to determine if there has been loss of kidney function and even then they are only concerned when it drops below 60.

Not related to those test results but I've also had kidney scans and cystoscopies (bladder) and all good.

My kidney function has remained in the high 60s.

Important thing for kidney health (from my Googling) is to avoid diabetes and high blood pressure.

Gfr of 68 isn’t a trigger point is it? I have family with kidney disease who are below 20 and still ok. Not sure about your other results but if the doctors were that concerned they’d be talking dialysis

Press on this. Find out more. Do not let it ride!!

My DH had a physical in his 30s which identified high protein in his urine. No one could explain this and no one bothered to pursue this.

At age 50, he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer with defective plasma cells which produces high levels of proteins which are processed through the kidneys. By the time anyone finally realised, there were options to treat it but there was no way to cure it. If anyone had diagnosed it sooner, it could have been negated. Instead, he endured 3 long stays in hospital, two stem cell transplants, crazy drugs, weekly blood tests, thwarted holidays due to blocked insurance cover, intermittent depression, anxiety about bone fragility and ...

My DH died of renal failure this winter aged 57.

Go back. Demand more tests!

Gfr of 68 isn’t a trigger point is it?

I assume it was because there was a big drop in a short time.

But you're right that people with a reading much, much lower lead perfectly normal lives.

My mum has kidney disease and she didn’t have to start dialysis until her GFR reached 9. It wasn’t until it was at around 30 that the doctors started to take it seriously. It took about 20 years to get from 68 to 30

It took about 20 years to get from 68 to 30

And the vast majority don't drop that low.

Exact same happened to me! Had uveitis first (eye inflammation) and blood tests showed declining kidney function (low eGFR and high creatinine). Also had protein and white blood cells in urine. Egfr over the space of 2 months went to 48 at lowest. Had every test under the sun including kidney biopsy which showed nothing wrong. This was in early 2023. Kidneys are now back working as they should be and egfr/creatinine normal. They called it an AKI possibly caused by a virus. I was 36 at the time

tests for kidney function are often only reported as “normal”, ie over 60 egfr, because they are prone to variability, even your level of hydration can cause dramatic changes, and people get fixated on the fluctuations. Your kidneys are functioning fine. You’ve got follow up tests booked. Tbh I would be more focused on your levels of anxiety, are you getting any support with that?

I have had the same phone call from my GP today. My levels were 69 last year and 57 this year. I am 58. I have to do a urine sample in the morning to see if there is protein in my urine. High blood pressure (which I am on medication for) is thought to be the issue and the first step they told me was to change that medication. The other point the GP made was dehydration. I had a bout of diarrhoea before my blood test so it could have been that. I think it more likely to be my high blood pressure as I had bloods done twice, 2 months apart, and the levels were 57 both times.
I was really worried but as others have said above, people are functioning normally at much lower levels.
I am also failing miserably at keeping my stress levels under control but my stress isn’t health related. Maybe stress does knock your levels?

Thanks everyone, just a quick update to say that I had a further blood test and just had results to say everything back to normal. Efgr back to above 90 and creatine dropped to 68.
Dr seems happy that everything back to normal, however I have requested a further full bloods in 3 months just to keep an eye on it.
Thank you everyone for your helpful responses :)

Thanks for updating us, OP 😊