Objectives: Serum creatinine is the most common endogenous marker of renal function. The proportionality between creatinine production and muscle mass requires adjustment for height and body composition. The low molecular weight protein cystatin C is produced by all nucleated cells and eliminated by glomerular filtration. Therefore, cystatin C was studied as an alternative marker of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in children.
Methods: Cystatin C and creatinine were measured in sera from inulin clearance (CIn) examinations performed in 184 children aged 0.24 to 17.96 years. CIn ranged from 7 to 209 mL/min/1.73 m (median, 77).
Results: The reciprocal of cystatin C correlated better with CIn (r = 0.88) than the reciprocal of creatinine (r = 0.72). Stepwise regression analysis identified no covariates for the correlation between cystatin C and CIn, whereas height was a covariate for creatinine. Using an estimate of GFR from serum creatinine and height, correlation with CIn was similar to cystatin C, but female gender and dystrophy were associated with an overestimation of GFR. Diagnostic accuracy in the identification of reduced GFR measured as area under the receiver-operating characteristic plot was 0.970 +/- 0.135 (mean +/- SE) for cystatin C and 0.894 +/- 0.131 for creatinine (NS). A cutoff cystatin C concentration of 1.39 mg/L had 90% sensitivity and 86% specificity for detecting abnormal GFR.
Conclusion: Unlike creatinine, serum cystatin C reflects renal function in children independent of age, gender, height, and body composition.