My 70-year old aunt has Stage 3b CKD, based on my reading of her blood tests alone. I'm trying to interpret these results the best I can.
Back in 8/2008, her GFR was 49.5. It's since dipped to 44 and in Summer 2009, plummeted to 32. This is a loss of 17.5ml/min over 12 months. 32 is actually pretty close to Stage 4 CKD. Most recently, however, her GFR improved to 44. Still a loss of 6 ml/min over her 2008 reading.
- Her BUNs range from 22-25. Most recently they're 25.
- Her Creatinine ranges from 1.1-1.6. They have been going up and, most recently, it's 1.6.
- Her Cholorides (112-113) are always elevated. Most recently, it is 113.
Just how bad are these readings? My aunt suffers from hypertension and it looks like until recently, they were untreated. She's now on 25mg HCZL. She also has Hep B and is being treated with Hepsera 25mg, which can also damage kidneys. Both may have contributed to her GFR deterioration. Her resting BP before taking HCZA was something like 160/100.
When we talked to her PCP, under which her GFR has declined, he refused to refer her to a nephrologist, saying they're not that bad. I don't think you can say that when you plummet to 32 GFR. I've made an appointment with a nephrologist anyway. She has never seen a nephrologist in her life.
What are we looking at here? Are these numbers fairly typical or not that bad for someone who's about to turn 70? Or does she need to be looked at by a nephro?