How to Read your Microscopic Urinalysis Results
If you take blood tests quarterly, as I do, you might want to know what they really test. There are articles on eHow about the comprehensive metabolic panel, lipid panel, and CBC but not about the microscopic urinalysis. Well, that is, there wasn't before this one was published.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Ask your doctor for a copy of your urine test results. While your laboratory may insist only your doctor may have your results, most doctors are quite willing to give you a copy of yours.
-
2
Find the test in the left hand column: Urinalysis, Microscopic. Notice that the second column is probably your results, the third a notation of which results are out of reference (Blank is good here.), and the fourth is the reference range or "good" numbers. The final column is units, which is not important unless you have out of range results. Your lab may rearrange the columns, but they'll all be titled so that shouldn't matter too much.
-
-
3
WBC is white blood cells, the ones that deal with your immune system. A range of 0-5 is acceptable depending upon your lab's criterion. A higher count may simply mean your body is fighting an infection.
-
4
RBC is red blood cells. These are the ones that carry oxygen to your other cells and wastes from them. You'll find a smaller range of eference for these than for WBC in the urine. Too many RBC may indicate hematuria, or blood in the urine, which may be caused by disease in the kidney, bladder, prostate or a urinary tract infection.
-
5
Epithelial cells are not as important since they may enter the urine by dropping off the urinary tract and aren't used as a diagnostic tool, although their range of reference is 0-5.
-
6
Bacteria is only important if it is present, since the range of reference is NONE.
-
7
Hyaline Casts are normal, except if there are many of them. That may indicate kidney disease. The range of reference for this is NONE.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Make sure you read the range of reference for each component of the urinalysis so you can compare your out of reference results with them.
Ask your doctor for more information about the out of range components on the microscopic urinalysis portion of your urine test.
