Kidney School™—a program of Medical Education Institute, Inc.

Module 7—Understanding Kidney Lab Tests

Here are the urine tests summarized:

Urine test family – measures the presence of protein and wastes in the urine
Name of test What it measures Target range

Urine hemoglobin

Presence of red blood cells in the urine

  • none

Creatinine clearance

How fast the kidneys remove creatinine (protein waste) from your blood

  • Men: 97 to 137 ml/min/1.73 m2
  • Women: 88 to 128 ml/min/1.73 m2

Urine albumin

Amount of protein that passes through the kidneys and into the urine

  • 10 to 140 mg/L, or <30 mg/dL in 24 hours

Microalbuminuria

Very tiny amounts of protein in the urine

  • <12 mg/L

Albumin-to-creatinine ratio

Very tiny amounts of protein in the urine

  • Normal: <17 mg/g (men), <25 mg/g (women)
  • Microalbuminuria: 17 to 250 mg/g (men), 25 to 355 mg/g (women)
  • Albuminuria: >250 mg/g (men), >355 mg/g (women)

Page 26 of 33 | Further reading