A urinalysis (or "UA") is an array of tests performed on urine and one of the most common methods of medical diagnosis. Urine is a liquid waste product of the body secreted by the Kidneys by a process of filtration from Blood and Excreted through the Urethra. Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the Diagnosis is the identification by Process of elimination, of the nature of anything A part of a urinalysis can be performed by using urine dipsticks, in which the test results can be read as color changes. A dipstick is one of several devices dipped into a liquid to perform a chemical test or to provide a measure of quantity of the liquid

Medical urinalysis

A typical medical urinalysis usually includes:

• a description of color and appearance.
• specific gravity - normally 1. Specific gravity, in the context of clinical pathology, is a Urinalysis parameter commonly used in the evaluation of Kidney function and can aid in 010 to 1. 030. This test detects ion concentration of the urine. Small amounts of protein or ketoacidosis tend to elevate results of the specific gravity. Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of the Density of a given solid or liquid substance to the density of water at a specific temperature and pressure typically
• pH - normally 4. pH is the measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a Solution. 8 to 7. 5.
• ketone bodies - normally negative (absent)
• protein - normally negative (absent)
• urobilinogen
• bilirubin
• glucose - normally negative (absent)
• RBC number
• WBC number
• hCG - normally absent, this hormone appears in the urine of pregnant women. Ketone bodies are three water-soluble compounds that are produced as by-products when Fatty acids are broken down for energy in the Liver and Proteins are large Organic compounds made of Amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by Peptide bonds between the Carboxyl Urobilinogen is a colourless product of Bilirubin reduction It is formed in the intestines by Bacterial action Bilirubin (formerly referred to as hematoidin) is the yellow breakdown product of normal Heme Catabolism. Glucose (Glc a Monosaccharide (or simple Sugar) also known as grape sugar, is an important Carbohydrate in Biology. Red blood cells are the most common type of Blood cell and the Vertebrate body's principal means of delivering Oxygen to the body tissues via the Blood Human chorionic gonadotropin ( hCG) is a Glycoprotein Hormone produced in Pregnancy that is made by the Embryo soon after conception Pregnancy ( Latin graviditas) is the carrying of one or more offspring known as a Fetus or Embryo, inside the Uterus of a Female Home pregnancy tests commonly detect this substance. A pregnancy test attempts to determine whether or not a female is pregnant.
• Pyroluria

Microscopic examination

A urine sample is about to be examined under a phase-contrast microscope using a Neubauer counting chamber. Pyroluria (or malvaria from the term mauve factor) is a controversial diagnosis in the branch of Orthomolecular medicine, a branch of Alternative medicine The urine is under the cover slide, in the upper segment formed by the H-shaped grooves.

The numbers and types of cells and/or material such as urinary casts can yield a great detail of information and may suggest a specific diagnosis. The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known living Organisms It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living and is often called Urinary casts are cylindrical aggregations of particulate matter that form in the distal Nephron, dislodge and eventually pass into the Urine.

• eosinophiluria - associated with allergic interstitial nephritis, atheroembolic disease
• RBC casts - associated with glomerulonephritis, vasculitis, malignant hypertension
• WBC casts - associated with acute interstitial nephritis, exudative glomerulonephritis, severe pyelonephritis
• (heme) granular casts - associated with acute tubular necrosis
• crystalluria -- associated with acute urate nephropathy (or "Acute uric acid nephropathy", AUAN)
• calcium oxalate - associated with ethylene glycol toxicity

See also

• uroscopy, the ancient form of this analysis
• Medical technologist

External links

• WebMD
• American Family Physician
• Interpreting urinalysis
• PediactricOnCall
• Lab Tests Online: Urinalysis