Lab Values - Urinalysis Flash Cards

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Title: Lab Values - Urinalysis
Description: Lab Values - Urinalysis
Number of Cards: 15
Save Count: 1
Author: jkarnes11
Created: 2010-12-05
Tags: fundamentals lab urinalysis values
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    • Question
    • Answer
    • Side 3
    • Hematuria
    • Blood in the urine
    • Pyuria
    • Pus in the urine
    • Color
    • Many things affect urine color, including fluid balance, diet, medicines, and diseases. How dark or light the color is tells you how much water is in it. Normal, fresh urine is pale yellow to yellow/amber in color and clear. Some medicines, blackberries, beets, rhubarb, or blood in the urine can turn urine red-brown

      Normal:
      pale/yellow
    • Clarity
    • Urine is normally clear. Bacteria, blood, sperm, crystals, or mucus can make urine look cloudy.

      Normal:
      Clear
    • Odor
    • Urine does not smell very strong, but has a slightly "nutty" odor. Some diseases cause a change in the odor of urine. For example, an infection with E. coli bacteria can cause a bad odor, while diabetes or starvation can cause a sweet, fruity odor.

      Normal:
      No strong odor; maybe a "nutty" smell

    • Specific Gravity
    • This checks the amount of substances in the urine. It also shows how well the kidneys balance the amount of water in urine. The higher the specific gravity, the more solid material is in the urine. Increased fluid intake results in kidneys making urine with a high amount of water in it which has a low specific gravity. Decreased fluid intake results in the kidney's making urine with a small amount of water in it which has a high specific gravity.

      Normal Range:
      1.015 - 1.030
    • pH
    • A measure of how acidic or alkaline the urine is. A urine pH 4 is strongly acidic, 7 is neutral, and 9 is a strong alkaline. Sometimes the pH of urine is affected by certain treatments.

      Normal Range:
      5 - 7
    • Protein & Blood
    • Protein is normally not found in the urine. Fever, hard exercise, pregnancy, and some diseases, especially kidney disease, may cause protein to be in urine. Blood (hematuria) should not be present.

      Normal:
      Negative for Protein and Blood
    • Glucose
    • Glucose is the type of sugar found in blood. Normally there is very little to no glucose in urine. When the blood sugar level is very high, as in uncontrolled diabetes, the sugar spills over into the urine. Glucose can also be found in urine when the kidneys are diseased or damaged

      Normal:
      Negative for Glucose
    • Nitrites
    • Bacteria that cause a UTI make an enzyme that changes urinary nitrates to nitrites. Nitrites in urine show a UTI is present.

      Normal:
      Negative for Nitrites
    • Leukocyte Esterase
    • A positive leukocyte esterase test results from the presence of WBC either as whole cells or lysed cells. Pyuria can be detected even if the urine sample contains damaged or lysed WBCs.

      Normal:
      Negative for Leukocyte Esterase
    • Ketones
    • When fat is broken down for energy, the body makes substances called ketones (or ketone bodies). These are passed in the urine. Large amounts of ketones in the urine may mean a very serious condition, diabetic ketoacidosis, is present.

      Normal:
      Negative for Ketones

    • Bilirubin
    • Normally, no bilirubin is detected in urine by even the most sensitive methods. Even trace amounts of bilirubin are sufficiently abnormal to require further investigation. Bilirubin comes from the breakdown of hemoglobin in red blood cells. Causes of bilirubin in urine: liver disorders, cirrhosis, hepatitis, obstruction of bile duct.

      Normal:
      Negative for Bilirubin
    • Urine Culture
    • A urine culture is a test to detect and identify organisms (usually bacteria) that may be causing a UTI. Urine in the bladder is normally sterile - it does not contain any bacteria or other organisms (such as fungi) - but a urine sample can pick up bacteria in the urethra during urination. A urine sample is kept under conditions that allow bacteria and other organisms grow.

      Results:
      Negative - only a few organisms grow
      Positive - organisms grow in numerous numbers and indicate an infections. The type of organisms causing the infection is identified with a microscope or by chemical tests.
    • Sensitivity
    • If bacteria that can cause an infection is found in a urine culture, then they may perform a sensitivity test to determine which antibiotic will be most effective in treating the infection.