Urinalysis – Chronic pelvic Pain
Step 4: Urinalysis
Your first appointment will also always include a series of urine tests, what is referred to as urinalysis. Urinalysis is quite valuable for diagnosing dozens of conditions, but the most common reasons Dr. Nezhat conducts these tests is to assess your overall health, as well as to measure levels of:
· leukocytes
· nitrites
· blood urea nitrogen (BUN)
· urobilinogen
· protein
· pH
· blood in the urine
· specific Gravity
· ketones
· bilirubin
· glucose
Urinalysis is also used to look for signs of:
– pregnancy
– ectopic pregnancy
– urinary tract infections (includes the urethra, bladder, ureters, or kidneys)
– other infections
– hematuria (blood in the urine)
– bladder stones
– kidney disorders
– kidney stones
– glomerulonephritis
– diabetes
– anemia
– lupus
– endocrine disorders
Many of these tests are more useful for assessing your overall health, rather than for uncovering any specific disorder. And, if abnormalities are found, sometimes it’s just the result of harmless, temporary changes in your physiology, like the increase in proteins that can occur after strenuous exercise or after taking certain medications.
However, examples of conditions that urinalysis may help detect include:
– elevated blood urea nitrogen (BUN) may indicate an infection
– presence of proteins, nitrites, or leukocytes may indicate a bacterial infection of the bladder
– elevated proteins (proteinuria or microalbuminuria) can be caused by certain medications or by kidney infection, high blood pressure, lupus, heart disorders, Rheumatoid arthritis, and diabetes, among other disorders
Note: Dr. Nezhat always performs a pregnancy test because some procedures, particularly hysteroscopy, absolutely cannot be performed during pregnancy as they could harm the fetus.
NEXT: BLOOD TEST