Annual health checks periodically include urine tests that serve several purposes, including detecting symptoms of kidney disease. The presence of albumin in the urine is an indicator as is the glomerular filtration rate. In diabetic nephropathy, albuminuria first appears, causing excessive filtration and eventually a decrease in GFR.
However, excessive filtration cannot be detected in the elderly due to the age-related decrease in GFR. To accurately assess GFR, researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University have devised a new calculation method.
The group led by Dr. Akihiro Tsuda, professor at the Graduate School of Medicine, evaluated 180 kidney transplant donor candidates to define a new formula to determine the hyperfiltration threshold value based on age and blood pressure values. TFG.
Among other findings, it was determined that the conventional method of correcting body surface area in obese patients was inaccurate since excessive filtration cannot be detected. The researchers suggest calculating GFR without the correction, but taking into account the decrease in filtration rate due to aging.
“Since hyperfiltration is a precursor to diabetic nephropathy, we hope that the use of this new formulation will diagnose the condition more accurately, leading to earlier detection and treatment,” Dr. Tsuda said.
The findings were published in Hypertension research.