Kidney failure, acute - Tests and diagnosis

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Kidney failure, acute - Tests and diagnosis
Mayo Clinic

May 13, 2008

When signs and symptoms point to acute kidney failure, blood and urine tests pin down the diagnosis. Changes associated with acute kidney failure include:

* Daily urine output usually falls to less than 2 cups (500 milliliters).
* Blood urea and creatinine levels rise rapidly.
* Blood electrolyte concentrations — levels of minerals such as sodium, potassium and calcium that regulate fluid balance and muscle function, plus many other vital processes — become unstable, causing swelling (edema) and lung congestion.
* Blood potassium, in particular, rises rapidly, often to life-threatening levels.

Ultrasound is the imaging test most commonly used in diagnosing kidney failure, but your doctor may also order an abdominal computerized tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan.

In a few cases, your doctor may remove a small sample (biopsy) of kidney tissue and send it to a laboratory for microscopic examination to identify the cause of acute kidney failure.

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