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Creatinine Clearance Calculator (Cockcroft-Gault)

Estimate creatinine clearance with the 1976 Cockcroft-Gault formula. Used on most FDA drug labels for renal dose adjustment. Supports mg/dL and umol/L, kg and lb, and IBW/AdjBW correction for obese patients.

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Cockcroft-Gault creatinine clearance calculator for kidney function assessment and renal drug dosing. Enter age, sex, weight, serum creatinine, and optionally height to handle obesity correction. Returns CrCl in mL/min, the corresponding KDIGO CKD stage, and BMI-aware IBW/AdjBW alternatives.

The Cockcroft-Gault equation (1976) is: CrCl_male (mL/min) = ((140 − age) × weight_kg) / (72 × Scr_mg/dL); for females, multiply by 0.85. To convert serum creatinine from umol/L to mg/dL, divide by 88.4. Devine ideal body weight (IBW) is 50 + 2.3 × (inches over 60) for males and 45.5 + 2.3 × (inches over 60) for females. When BMI > 30, pharmacy practice generally substitutes IBW, or Adjusted Body Weight (AdjBW = IBW + 0.4 × (TBW − IBW)) to avoid overestimating clearance from total body weight. Worked example: 65-year-old male, 70 kg, Scr 1.0 mg/dL → CrCl = ((140 − 65) × 70) / (72 × 1.0) = (75 × 70) / 72 = 72.9 mL/min, a mild reduction (G2). The same patient with Scr 1.5 mg/dL would have CrCl ≈ 48.6 mL/min (G3a), and many drugs (vancomycin, DOACs, gabapentin, metformin) need dose adjustment below 50-60 mL/min. CrCl by Cockcroft-Gault is the standard input for FDA-label renal dosing; CKD-EPI 2021 eGFR is preferred for CKD staging and prognosis.

Disclaimer: Educational tool only. Not for clinical decisions without verification by a licensed clinician. Drug dosing should follow current institutional pharmacy guidance and the specific FDA label for each medication.
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Frequently Asked Questions

What is creatinine clearance?
Creatinine clearance (CrCl) is the volume of blood plasma cleared of creatinine per unit time, expressed in mL/min. It is a proxy for glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and reflects how well the kidneys are filtering. CrCl tends to slightly overestimate true GFR because creatinine is also secreted by the renal tubules, not only filtered.
What is the Cockcroft-Gault formula?
Published by Cockcroft and Gault in 1976, the equation is CrCl (mL/min) = ((140 − age) × weight in kg) / (72 × serum creatinine in mg/dL), multiplied by 0.85 for females. It was derived from 249 men and remains the formula referenced on the majority of FDA drug labels for renal dose adjustment.
Should I use Cockcroft-Gault or CKD-EPI?
Use CKD-EPI 2021 (race-free) for staging and diagnosing CKD - it is what labs report as eGFR and what KDIGO recommends. Use Cockcroft-Gault for renal drug dosing whenever a drug label specifies CrCl, because FDA pharmacokinetic studies historically used Cockcroft-Gault. Many hospital pharmacies still default to C-G for dose adjustment.
What CrCl level indicates kidney disease?
By KDIGO categories: >=90 mL/min is G1 (normal or high), 60-89 is G2 (mildly decreased), 45-59 is G3a, 30-44 is G3b, 15-29 is G4 (severely decreased), and <15 is G5 (kidney failure, often requiring dialysis). CKD is defined as abnormalities of kidney structure or function for >3 months, so a single low CrCl is not a diagnosis on its own.
Why does sex affect creatinine clearance?
Serum creatinine depends on muscle mass, which is on average lower in females than males of equivalent body weight. The Cockcroft-Gault equation applies a 0.85 correction factor for females to account for this lower creatinine production. Modern equations like CKD-EPI 2021 also include a sex term for the same reason.
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