Assessment of Glomerular Filtration Rate in Older Adults in Brazil

Objective: To evaluate the performance of renal function markers in the elderly. Methods: 105 individuals over 60 years old were divided in group A (60 to 79) and group B (≥ 80 years old) to determine the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) using creatinine and cystatin C equations. Results: In group A, the best correlations were observed between the serum creatinine levels and the eGFR calculated using the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) creatinine, and the cystatin C levels with CKD-EPI cystatin and Larsson equations, and in group B, between creatinine and CKD-EPI creatinine-cystatin and CKD-EPI cystatin and cystatin with CKD-EPI cystatin equation. Conclusions: The CKD-EPI equations (especially CKD-EPI cystatin) presented the best performance in our study, and CKD-EPI creatinine seems to be appropriate for daily practice. The elderly population requires a different renal function assessment or possibly a different definition of CKD according to age ranges. Keywords: Creatinine; Cystatin; Age; Glomerular filtration rate