The kidney test

According to Anil Agarwal, MD, director of interventional nephrology at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio, the best ways to diagnose kidney disease are through urine and blood screening tests. The urine test looks for blood proteins (which shouldn’t be in urine), bacteria, and minerals that can form kidney stones. A blood test can detect a waste product from your muscles called creatinine; unhealthy kidneys have trouble filtering out creatinine. Creatinine is normally removed from your blood by your kidneys, but when kidney function slows, creatinine levels rise. “Urine and blood analysis are a good idea, and sometimes kidney ultrasound can provide more clues,” says Dr. Agarwal.