Creatinine Kreatinine in blood kidney function - Finger prick

Creatinine in blood, also written as creatinine.

With impaired kidney function, the kreatinine in our blood rises a little, because the supply remains the same, while the excretion decreases.

Creatinine is a breakdown product of Creatine phosphate in muscle tissue. It is produced by our body in a fairly constant amount, depending on the amount of muscle mass present.

Creatinine is completely filtered from the blood by the kidneys and excreted in the urine. This creates an equilibrium level in our blood. This balance level is the result of the production rate in the muscles and the excretion by the kidneys. The creatinine concentration in the blood and the excretion of creatinine in the urine together form a measure of the filtration capacity of our kidneys. This is also the measure of the amount of functioning kidney tissue as a whole.

Men usually have a higher concentration of creatinine in their blood than women. This is because they have more skeletal muscle. Typically, muscular people have a higher creatinine concentration than less muscular people. The normal concentration level is usually between 60 and 120 micromol/liter.

It is better to measure creatinine in combination with other blood values for a more complete picture.