high creatinine levels

[IronCitGrl]

I had some blood work done and I noticed that my creatinine levels were marked with an asterisk meaning that the level in my blood is higher than the bracket of a normal range, yet the doctor stated that my bloodwork is acceptable. I am not taking creatine. Would the high level of creatinine be because I lift? I believe there was one other one that was high and I think it was nitrogen or something??

[Emma-Leigh]

I had some blood work done and I noticed that my creatinine levels were marked with an asterisk meaning that the level in my blood is higher than the bracket of a normal range, yet the doctor stated that my bloodwork is acceptable. I am not taking creatine. Would the high level of creatinine be because I lift? I believe there was one other one that was high and I think it was nitrogen or something??

Firstly - I will mention that the lab values of these tests are only 'standard curves'. The intervals of NORMAL are only 95% CI (confidence intervals) - which means that only 95% of the NORMAL population fall in the range (the other 5% of NORMAL people fall out of the range without a reason.

Secondly - Creatinine levels in your blood are a reflection of a few things:
1. your muscle mass, and the rate at which creatinine is lost from your muscles.
2. your kidney function, and the rate at which your kidneys are working to remove the creatinine from your blood.

So - as creatinine reflects your muscles and their renewal rate - those with HIGH muscle masses (eg: bodybuilders), or HIGH muscle mass turn over (eg: those who weight train) will tend to have HIGHER creatinine levels. As you train, and likely have an increased muscle mass (and likely worked out before the tests) this could very well be one of the reasons for the increase.

On the second point - decreased kidney function (which means you don't remove the creatinine from the blood as quickly as you should) will also have high creatinine levels [things like kidney disease, infection, cancer, obstruction]. But other things will also be 'abnormal' if these were the case (eg: high urea, abnormal urine tests/protein in your urine)... And - dehydration can also 'falsely' make it look like there are kidney problems, because you don't get as much blood filtrating through the kidney to remove the creatinine as you would if you were hydrated. [something to think about if you didn't drink water for 16 hrs before the test].

If you are concerned, you should bring it up with your doc... but it sounds like they are not worried, and so it is likely the result was probably due to your training/ muscle mass.

[Adelaide.]

To expand on what Emma said, sometimes different labs have different "cut off" values. For example Lab A could have a cut off of 50 on a test, and Lab B uses a cut off of 55. If you have the test done at Lab A and the results are 51, then it gets flagged as high. Your doc will be familiar with what is known as "clinically significant" lab values, and with that knowledge they can dismiss the 51 result.

Does that make sense? I'm not sure if I explained it very well.

[IronCitGrl]

To expand on what Emma said, sometimes different labs have different "cut off" values. For example Lab A could have a cut off of 50 on a test, and Lab B uses a cut off of 55. If you have the test done at Lab A and the results are 51, then it gets flagged as high. Your doc will be familiar with what is known as "clinically significant" lab values, and with that knowledge they can dismiss the 51 result.

Does that make sense? I'm not sure if I explained it very well.

It makes sense. These are the ones that were high and it wasn't just creatinine as I thought it is the BUN/creatinine ratio it says normal is 6-22 and mine was 32.4. My blood urea nitrogen was also a little high normal is 7-25 and mine was 27.

And for some reason my blood carbon dioxide levels are a little low normal is 21-33 and mine was 19. Does that mean I'm out of shape?

[Emma-Leigh]

It makes sense. These are the ones that were high and it wasn't just creatinine as I thought it is the BUN/creatinine ratio it says normal is 6-22 and mine was 32.4. My blood urea nitrogen was also a little high normal is 7-25 and mine was 27.

And for some reason my blood carbon dioxide levels are a little low normal is 21-33 and mine was 19. Does that mean I'm out of shape?

It doesn't surprise me that your BUN is high. Urea is a product of the breakdown/ metabolism of protein. High protein diet = high BUN. The ratio is simply a reflection of a higher BUN [increase BUN to a greater proportion than creatinine is increased and the ratio of BUN to Creatinine will increase].

There are a few other things that will also put the levels up (once again, a good example would be kidney damage which means that the urea is not filtered as quickly as it should be.... and another would be dehydration for the same reasons as above). But in your case? Likely to be a higher protein diet.


With regards to the carbon dioxide (CO2) - it is likely (once again) a reflection of your diet/ lifestyle.

Without going into too much of the chem behind it, CO2 mainly exists as bicarb in your blood (yes, like the stuff you bake with - short hand is HCO3-). HCO3- is ALKALINE (hence the negative charge). And it is involved in maintaining the acid/base balance in your body via a series of chemical reactions (if you are interested):


When your body becomes too acidic (eg: increased acid intake or through the loss of alkaline substances in your intestine or urine) the above reaction shifts so the excess H+ (acid) is USED -> and the HCO3- is 'used' up [which means your blood levels of FREE HCO3- go down].

If your body becomes too alkali (eg: loss of acid through vomiting) the above reaction shifts so you RELEASE hydrogen (which is acidic) into the blood to drop the pH again... And, as a consequence of this, you also 'release' the HCO3- back into the blood and your levels INCREASE (which means your blood CO2 will also increase).

So..... what does it mean? Basically: your body is ACIDIC - so it is using up the FREE HCO3- to 'mop up' the free hydrogen.... and this means your carbon dioxide levels go down.

Why are you acidic? Well... a high protein diet causes your body to increase acid production / become acidic (one of the reasons why it can impact bone health - because the acid can 'wear away' at your bones).... There are other causes of higher acid in the blood (eg: diarrhoea, diabetes, Kidney disease again...) - but if your dietary protein is HIGH then this is likely the cause.

Is this a bad thing? I would say it DOES indicate that there is a bit of an imbalance going on with your diet.... And how can you fix it?

First - check with your doc that this is what they feel is going on too.
Second - Once you get the all clear on other potential causes:
Lower acid intake/protein intake (ensuring you get adequate amounts, but not excessive amounts)
Increase vegetables x muchly (they are alkaline)
Increase potassium intake (vegetables, but also can get things like lite-salt to help increase levels)
LOTS of water (so you flush through your kidneys well)

There is a good resource here: http://www.essense-of-life.com/moreinfo/foodcharts.htm

[IronCitGrl]

Thank you Emma! I know my doctor isn't too concerned but I just like to learn all the sciencey stuff that goes on. My protein intake isn't as high as normal because my calories are low right now I get in 160 grams/day. The highest amount I intake is around 200 grams. Maybe I don't need so much protein?

[SophieM]

Funny you posted this. I just had blood work done and some of my labs were off as well. my BUN was high and the urinalysis showed blood (large amounts), WBC's (31), and RBC's (43).

Since my doctor didn't mention any of it, I'm just going to wait and bring it up at my next appointment in ~2 months. No use worrying myself if she isn't worried. But I agree, I like learning why things are the way they are.

[DanceDiva]

Funny you posted this. I just had blood work done and some of my labs were off as well. my BUN was high and the urinalysis showed blood (large amounts), WBC's (31), and RBC's (43).

Since my doctor didn't mention any of it, I'm just going to wait and bring it up at my next appointment in ~2 months. No use worrying myself if she isn't worried. But I agree, I like learning why things are the way they are.

Doctors do miss things.

There's nothing wrong with you calling now and confirming that the doctor is not worried about these values.

[Bigtoph]

Doctors do miss things.

There's nothing wrong with you calling now and confirming that the doctor is not worried about these values.

DEFINITIVE:
I took creatine (Kre-Alkylin), and ahd a protein diet of 300g/plus per day. I got my creatinine measured at 2.0!!! I took 6 weeks to pull back, stop the creatine supps, pull back on protein, and NOT lift at least 4 days before. My numbers 6 weeks later came back as 1.0, which is well within normal range, and I still have 20" arms!!! lesson learned: doctors don't understand bodybuilding. Yes, creatinine levels are a good indicator of kidney function in normal people, but diet and supps HEAVILY influence those numbers. Do your research, and if you are ready, live a "normal lifestyle" for a few weeks and I am sure you will be fine. Although, don't take what I say with certainty. ALWAYS consult with/ work with a doc. My doc has learned a lot from me and is awesome.

[TXFitnessDude]

I wanted to throw a quick contribution out to this post as it was helpful for me to see this topic being discussed over the past couple of weeks. I too recently had normal blood work results (minus ONE number....creatinine). My levels were above normal and had me concerned. The day prior to my physical and blood work, I got the usual call from the generic voicemail nurse saying "No food or drink after 10:00 p.m." to which I took very literally. When they said NO FOOD or DRINK, I literally had NO FOOD or DRINK anticipating them drawing blood for lab work the next day. MAN was that stupid!!

So, here's how the night before my appointment broke down....

Got home from work, my wife and I had some running around to do so we did that and got home JUST IN TIME for me to knock out my Insanity workout and drink my protein drink at 9:50 p.m. (right before my cutoff). From that point forward, I literally had NOTHING. Not even WATER! I remember waking up the next morning feeling extremely parched. So, not only did I drink 25 grams of protein at almost 10:00 p.m. I had no water in my system to help assist with flushing the kidneys out. DUMB.

The next morning, I had my blood drawn at about 9:00 a.m. and my results came back with high creatinine (1.36). Normal is below 1.27. Needless to say, the next couple of weeks were full of undue stress. I kept reading about kidney failure and everything else that can scare the living hell out of you. ALL FOR NO REASON! My lab work was falsely representing poor kidney function because I was dehydrated as hell! Don't do this to yourself guys and gals! Always drink lots of water before lab work. ALWAYS!

In the end, my number dropped back into the normal range when the doc had me go back for a second blood test. With my body well hydrated, it went all the way down to 1.19 but even better, my GFR numbers increased by 11 points (from 63 to 74). This is also an indicator of good kidney function. Anything greater than 59 is considered normal. This all could have been avoided had their stupid message been more descriptive! NO FOOR OR DRINK OTHER THAN WATER after 10:00 p.m.!!! Ugh.

In the end, I'm very relieved and happy that I'm healthy and all is well with the kidneys but I literally stressed over this for 2 weeks unnecessarily. Save yourself the same stress and go prepared!

I hope this helps someone in the future. I would have been relieved to have read this post from someone else a few weeks ago! =)

God Bless!

[knite786]

I too had some blood work done about 2 weeks prior and the Dr. was concerned with my Creatinine Serum results. Normal is <=1.30 mg/dL but I was at 1.36. I didn't see that as a factor but she asked me if I took Creatine and I didn't. A few other results were a bit abnormal as well, like HEMOGLOBIN A1C. Considering these the Dr. basically said that I was Pre-Diabetic and had Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 2 mild???? Not exactly what you want to hear when you are working your ass off in the gym and eating right.

The day off my labs, I had forgotten that I had to go do lab work and got ready for my workout and took my pre-workout drink, then my reminder went off about my appointment. I left everything and went to the appt. I guess having that in my system also elevated my BP which they said was abnormally high and hence the results of my tests. Im not worried too much but it is lingering in the back of my head. I didnt realize why my BP was so high until I got home and thought about what I had done before. The pre-workout probably messed with all my labs... But I dont see how that can diagnose me as having Chronic Kidney Disease!! I have another appt in a week or so which I will be more mindful about not taking anything prior. Im not a bit unsure about the supps I'm taking and think twice... :|

[sy2502]

My lab work comes back screwy half of the times. Once they gave me an emergency call because apparently I was going into kidney failure when in fact they had mismatched my lab work with somebody else's.

[RetroLegend]

what were your guys gfr's?

[haunter90]

I take anywhere from 3-12 grams of creatine per day (don't hate on me...it's just that obv i have my creatine supplement , my pre has it and my protein has it also) , I have had my blood test just a few weeks ago , came back well within normal range ( 0.76 ) so in all fairness....make sure your liver is keeping up with your creatine intake =)