Can infection increase creatinine level?

Q: I have been having a cold since a week. My creatinine level increased from 1.1 to 1.3 (whereas the reference range is 0.8-1.25). I am 30 years old and underwent kidney transplantation 3 years back. Is the increase in creatinine level due to the cold? Will it come back to normal? I am taking Actifed for cold.

A:Infections can cause acute rise in urea and creatinine. However fluctuations of 1.1 to 1.3 could be within the co-efficient of variation limit for creatinine even in very good labs. Unless it is consistently higher and both urea and creatinine go up to a similar degree, it may be a result of lab variation, which should return to normal.