Kidney Function & Electrolytes
Kidneys filter the blood, balance salt and water, and control blood pressure. These tests check how well they clean and balance.
For the wider picture: what the organ does, what influences it and everyday habits that support it: read the kidney health education module.
- Creatinine
A waste product from muscle activity that the kidneys filter out.
- Urea
Waste product from protein breakdown: made by the liver, removed by the kidneys.
- eGFR (Estimated Filtration Rate)
An estimate of how many millilitres of blood your kidneys filter every minute.
- Sodium
The main salt outside your cells: controls fluid balance and nerve signals.
- Potassium
The main salt inside cells: vital for nerve and especially heart rhythm.
- Chloride
A salt that partners with sodium to keep fluid and acid-base balance.
- Bicarbonate
The body's main acid buffer: keeps blood pH steady.
- Calcium
Essential for bone, muscle contraction, nerve signals and clotting.
- Phosphate
Partner of calcium in bone: also vital for energy molecules (ATP) and DNA.