Abstract
In debilitated elderly patients in whom renal function must be evaluated to determine drug dosages for treatment, it is very difficult to obtain the complete 24-hour urine collections required to measure creatinine clearance (Ccr). Additionally, Ccr in these patients can not be predicted accurately based on their age, sex, actual body weight (BW) and the level of serum creatinine (Scr). To evaluate Ccr without 24-hour urine collections, we attempted to develop the following formula to estimate Ccr based on sex, BW, Scr, and the value of serum albumin (Alb).
Ccr (ml/min) = {4×Alb (g/dl) +5} ×BW (kg) /20×Scr (mg/dl)
(for females, use 75% of BW)
This equation provided a good correlation coefficient between the measured and predicted Ccr (r=0.828), and a regression line which was not significantly different from the line of identity (y=0.889x+4.654). We suggest this formula using Alb as a new parameter could be clinically useful in predicting Ccr in the debilitated elderly.
