MA: Urine Analysis

Glomerulonephritis is a kidney disease. This condition affects the glomeruli. Which of the following is found in laboratory results?

• Blood in Urine

• Glucose in Urine

• Bile in Urine

• Bile salt in Urine

• Nitrate in Urine

Which of the following is termed to urine output less than 500ml/24hr

• Nonoliguria

• Oliguria

• Anuria

• Azotemia

• Polyuria

Regarding the color of urine, which one of the following is correct?

• Normal color urine is yellow (amber) or straw colored.

• A colorless, pale urine indicates a large amount of water in the urine.

• A Smokey-red or brown color urine indicates a presence of large amounts of blood.

• Foods such as beets and certain drugs also can produce a red coloration of urine.

• All of the above

Regarding the Appearance of urine, which one of the following is correct?

• Normally, urine should be clear.

• Cloudy or turbid urine indicates a urinary tract infection with pus (pyuria) and bacteria (bacteriuria).

• Both A and B

• None of the above

Answer explanation

Normally, urine should be clear. Cloudy or turbid urine indicates a urinary tract infection with pus (pyuria) and bacteria (bacteriuria).

pH:

Determination of pH reveals the chemical nature of urine. It indicates to what degree a solution is acid or alkaline (basic). Normal urine is slightly acidic (pH of 6.5). However, in infections of the bladder, the urine pH may be alkaline, owing to the actions of bacteria in the urine that break down urea and release ammonia (an alkaline substance).

• True

• False

Regarding the protein in urine, which one of the following is correct?

• Small amounts of protein are normally found in the urine but not in sufficient quantities to produce a positive result by ordinary methods of testing. 

• When urinary tests for protein become positive, albumin is usually responsible. Albumin is the major protein in blood plasma. 

• If albumin is detected in the urine (albuminuria), it may indicate a leak in the glomerular membrane, which allows albumin to enter in the renal tubule and pass into urine. 

• All of the above

Answer explanation

Through more sensitive testing, abnormal amounts of albumin may be detected (microalbuminuria) when ordinary tests are negative. Microalbuminuria is recognized as the earliest sign of renal involvement in diabetes mellitus.

Regarding the glucose in urine, which one of the following is correct?

• Sugar is not normally found in the urine. 

• In most cases, when glucose does appear (glycosuria), it indicates diabetes mellitus. 

• Both A and B

• None of the above

Answer explanation

In diabetes mellitus, there is excess sugar in the bloodstream (hyperglycemia), which leads to the "spilling over" of sugar to the urine. The renal tubules cannot reabsorb all the sugar that filters out through the glomerular membrane.

Regarding the specific gravity of urine, which one of the following is correct?

• Specific gravity is not a comparison of the density of urine with that of water. 

• The specific gravity of urine reflects the amounts of wastes, minerals, and solids through the urine.

• The urine of patients with diabetes mellitus has a higher-than-normal specific gravity because of the presence of sugar.

• All of the above

Regarding the Ketone bodies in urine, which one of the following is correct?

• Ketones (or acetones, a type of ketone body) are formed when fatty acids are broken down in the liver.

• Ketones accumulate in blood and urine when the body breaks down fat, instead of sugar, for fuel. 

• Ketonuria occurs in diabetes mellitus when cells deprived of sugar must use up their available fat for energy.

• All of the above

Answer explanation

In starvation, when sugar is not available, ketonuria and ketosis (ketones in the blood) occur as fat is catabolized abnormally.

Ketones in the blood are dangerous because they increase acidity of the blood (ketoacidosis). This can lead to coma (unconsciousness) and death.

Regarding the sediment and casts  in urine, which one of the following is correct?

• The presence of abnormal particles in the urine is a sign of a pathologic condition. 

• Such particles, which may settle to the bottom of the urine sample as sediment.

• Both A and B

• None of the above

Answer explanation

Such particles may include cells (epithelial cells, white blood cells, or red blood cells), bacteria, crystals, and casts (cylindrical structures of protein often containing cellular elements).