Creatinine is a waste product that’s made by your muscles. Your kidneys work to filter creatinine as well as other waste products out of your blood. After being filtered, these waste products are then expelled from your body in urine.
High creatinine may occur things such as dehydration or intake of large amounts of protein or the supplement creatine. All of these can be temporarily hard on your kidneys.
However, other causes of high creatinine may point to a health condition. Many of these conditions can cause damage or disease that impacts kidney function. They can include:
Drug toxicity (drug-induced nephrotoxicity)
Kidney infection (pyelonephritis)
Glomerulonephritis
Diabetes
High blood pressure
Heart diseases, such as atherosclerosis or congestive heart failure
Blockage of the urinary tract
Kidney failure, both acute and chronic
