Firstly you need to check your secure creatinine level, which is the best way
to tell how much kidney function you have. You do not need to have another test
to know your GFR. Your doctor can calculate it from your blood creatinine, your
age, race, gender and other factors. Your GFR tells your doctor your stage of
kidney disease and helps the doctor plan your treatment.
Perform an ultrasound or CT scan to get a picture of your kidneys and urinary
tract. This tells your doctor whether your kidneys are too large or too small,
whether you have a problem like a kidney stone or tumor and whether there are
any problems in the structure of your kidneys and urinary tract.
Perform a kidney biopsy, which is done in some cases to check for a specific
type of kidney disease, see how much kidney damage has occurred and help plan
treatment. To do a biopsy, the doctor removes small pieces of kidney tissue and
looks at them under a microscope.
