Patent Document ID: 20090298047
Application ID: 12143769
Patent Flag: 0

Claim One:
1. A method for distinguishing between kidney dysfunctions in a mammal, comprising the steps of: determining the level of creatinine in an isolated serum or plasma sample from a blood sample obtained from a mammal, to obtain a creatinine assay result, determining the level of NGAL in a urine sample obtained from the mammal to obtain a urinary NGAL assay result, comparing the creatinine assay result against a creatinine cutoff level, wherein a creatinine assay result above the creatinine cutoff level indicates the mammal has a kidney dysfunction selected from one the group consisting of pre-renal azotemia, an acute renal injury that may progress to acute renal failure, and chronic kidney disease; and comparing the urinary NGAL assay result against a urine NGAL cutoff level, wherein a urinary NGAL assay result above the urine NGAL cutoff level indicates the mammal has an acute renal injury that may progress to acute renal failure.