Background: It has been suggested that serum cystatin C (cyst-C) concentration provides a better indication of changes in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) than does serum creatinine concentration. Methods: Because of conflicting results as to the usefulness of cyst-C, we compared the GFRs calculated from serum cyst-C, inulin clearance and endogenous creatinine clearance in children. GFRs calculated from cystatin concentration, inulin clearance following a single injection and endogenous creatinine clearance using Jaffé and enzymic methods were compared in 66 children (1·3-21·9 years) with a variety of renal disorders. Receiver operating curve analysis was used to determine the cut-off value that would give the best discrimination between normal and decreased GFR. Results: The serum cyst-C concentration ranged from 0·66 to 7·61 mg/L (median 1·94). Serum creatinine Jaffé concentration (creat-J) ranged from 38 to 871 µmol/L (median 105) and creatinine enzymatic concentration (creat-E) ranged from 28 to 862 µmol/L (median 126). The linear correlation coefficient ( R) of 1/cyst-C versus GFR ( R = 0·937) did not differ from either that of 1/creat-J versus GFR ( R = 0·918) or that of 1/creat-E versus GFR ( R = 0·901). These coefficients had overlapping confidence intervals. The areas under the curve for cyst-C, creat-J and creat-E were 0·967, 0·977 and 0·924, respectively, and were not significantly different from each other. For cyst-C, the optimal cut-off was 1·1 mg/L. Conclusions: Serum cyst-C is equivalent to creat-J and creat-E as a marker for estimating the GFR in the paediatric population studied.
Is serum cystatin C the marker of choice to predict glomerular filtration rate in paediatric patients?
