In 1999, a new eGFR equation was developed as part of the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) Study Group (Levey, 1999). This equation markedly improved estimates of GFR in comparison to creatinine clearance or other equations of the time.
In 2006, after the establishment of LC-IDMS standardized creatinine assays, the equation was re-developed into its final form (Levey, 2006):
eGFR = 175 x (SCr)-1.154 x (Age)-0.203 x 0.742 (if female) x 1.212 (if African decent)
Key characteristics include:
- Considerable improvement over creatinine clearance / Cockcroft-Gault equation
- Loss of accuracy at eGFR >60 mL/min/m2 and in patients without CKD
- Validation limited in elderly age groups
- Exhibits inaccuracies in very young patients (< 18 years)
