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What is it about ?
In children, urine tests can be done for different reasons:
- Detect an infection of the urinary tract (bladder (cystitis) or kidney (nephritis), for example),
- Make a diagnosis of kidney disease,
- Help in the diagnosis of certain diseases, such as diabetes for example.
A first orientation test can be done by dipping a urine dipstick into a urine sample. This first test detects the presence of red and white blood cells, sugar (glucose), proteins and nitrites in the urine. If these results are abnormal, microscopic analysis and determination of the amount of protein should be performed. To do this, the urine sample is usually sent to a laboratory.
In what situations is a urinalysis performed?
A urine test is always done in the following cases:
- Abnormal thirst;
- Need urinating often (pollakiuria) ;
- Pain or burning sensation when urinating;
- Abnormal urine color or odor;
- Urine that foams;
- Signs of kidney disease (eg, abnormalities in blood values of kidney function);
- Fluid retention (edema) ;
- High blood pressure (hypertension) ;
- Small bleeding in the form of red dots on the skin (petechiae);
- Fever unexplained recurrence in an infant.
How to take a urine sample?
Collect a fresh, quality urine sample. Try to avoid contaminating the sample with skin bacteria. In small children, a urine bag is sometimes stuck to the skin. In older children, the sample can be taken when the child goes to the toilet.
- First of all, always wash the child’s genitals,
- Let the child start to urinate in the toilet,
- After a few seconds, ask him to urinate in the potty;
- You collect urine at mid-stream.
If it is not possible to obtain a correct sample and the analysis is very important, the doctor may take a single urine sample using a catheter (a flexible tube). This sample is usually taken in the hospital.
Abnormal results
Too much protein in the urine (proteinuria)
This excessive amount may be trivial or the result of serious illness. It can be caused by:
- A physical effort,
- A fever,
- a disturbance of the kidney filters.
Depending on the amount of protein lost in the urine, there may be a lack of protein in the blood. This lack can lead to fluid retention (edema), especially in the legs and around the eyes.
Too many red blood cells in the urine (hematuria)
This excessive amount may be due to:
- Kidney disease
- Damage to the lining of the bladder, ureters or urethra, or
- A lesion of the skin in the pubic area.
There are 2 types of hematuria:
- Microscopic hematuria, when the number of red blood cells in the urine is so low that a microscope is needed to see the red blood cells; It is invisible to the naked eye;
- Macroscopic hematuria, when the number of red blood cells is so high that the urine is red or dark.
Too many white blood cells in the urine (pyuria)
The primary cause of pyuria is a urinary tract infection, most often from the bladder (cystitis). Fortunately, kidney infections (pyelonephritis) are rarer. Any infection must be confirmed by a culture of pathogenic bacteria found in the urine sample.
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