The 24-hour urine test is a 24-hour urine test that is collected to evaluate kidney function, which is very useful for identifying and monitoring kidney disease.
This test is primarily intended to measure kidney function or to evaluate the amount of proteins or other substances in your urine, such as sodium, calcium, oxalate, or uric acid, for example, as a means of identifying diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract.
- To perform this test.
- It is necessary to collect all the urine in an appropriate container for a period of 24 hours.
- And it must be taken to the laboratory that will analyze the values.
- Find out what other urine tests are available and how to get them.
The 24-hour urine test is used to evaluate kidney function and detect possible kidney changes by determining the amount of certain substances in your urine, such as:
Other substances such as ammonia, urea, magnesium and phosphate can also be quantified in this test.
In this way, 24-hour urine can help your doctor identify problems such as kidney failure, kidney tubules disease, causes of urinary tract stones, or nephritis, which is a set of diseases that cause inflammation of the kidney glomeruli. To better understand what nephritis is and what it can cause.
During pregnancy, this test is often used to determine the presence of protein in a pregnant woman’s urine for the diagnosis of preeclampsia, which is a complication that occurs during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman develops high blood pressure, water retention. and protein loss due to urine.
To perform the 24-hour urine test, the person must follow these steps:
For example, if the person urinated at 8 a.m., the urine collection should end at exactly 8 a.m. the next day or at least 7:50 a.m. and no more than 8:10 a.m.
When collecting 24-hour urine, certain precautions are needed such as:
Between urine collections, the container should be in a cool place, preferably refrigerated. When the collection is complete, the container should be transported to the laboratory as soon as possible.
Initial 24-hour urine test values include
These values may vary depending on the age, gender, health status of the person and the laboratory performing the test, so they should always be evaluated by the doctor, who will indicate the need for treatment.
The 24-hour urine test for the difficulty of collection and the frequent errors that may occur, has been increasingly less requested in medical practice, being replaced by other more recent tests, such as mathematical formulas that can be performed after a simple urine test. . .