A PRACTICAL METHOD FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF GLOMERULAR FILTRATION RATE (INULIN CLEARANCE)

Abstract

The kidney, by virtue of its peculiar structure, lends itself particularly well to quantitative measurements. Until recently most studies concerning the quantitative aspects of renal function have dealt with the excretion of urea and exogenous creatinine. The extensive studies of Ambard,¹Addis,²and Möller, McIntosh and Van Slyke³have developed the laws governing the excretion of urea by the normal and the diseased human kidney. These studies have led to practical tests of renal function. Of these, the Ambard coefficient is now of historical interest only. The Addis urea ratio, though somewhat too complicated for routine use, is a good quantitative test of renal function. The urea clearance test of Van Slyke and his associates has been adopted universally as a simple and precise estimate of the functional state of the kidneys. Recent studies⁴have shown that the excretion of urea depends on a balance between the glomerular filtration rate