Diagnosis
Your doctor will review your medical history and order lab tests to assess your kidney function if FSGS is suspected. The usual tests are:
- Kidney (renal) function testing. Blood tests and an analysis of a 24-hour urine collection are mainstays. Sometimes a more sophisticated test may be ordered — an iothalamate clearance test, which uses a special contrast agent to track how well your kidneys are filtering. Mayo Clinic is one of the few centers to specialize in iothalamate clearance testing using a dedicated renal pathology laboratory.
- Kidney biopsy. Biopsy is the most accurate test to confirm the diagnosis of many kidney diseases, including FSGS. Because of the large number of people they evaluate each day, Mayo Clinic specialists are very experienced with kidney biopsies and have an outstanding track record for safety.
Read more about kidney biopsy.
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