Urine Analysis Overview

These flashcards cover key concepts related to urine analysis, including terms defining turbidity, causes of urine discoloration, and methods of measuring specific gravity.

Turbidity

The cloudiness or haziness of a liquid due to the presence of suspended particulates.

Port wine urine

A color of urine indicating porphobilinogen oxidation, which is associated with porphyrias.

Nonpathogenic causes of turbidity

Causes such as foods (beets, black raspberries) and medications (rifampin) that do not indicate disease.

Melanin

A pigment produced from the oxidation of melanogen, often indicating malignant melanoma when found in urine.

Alkaptonuria

A genetic condition characterized by the accumulation of homogentisic acid, leading to black urine.

Indican

A compound related to intestinal infections that oxidizes to indigo blue in urine.

Klebsiella/Providencia

Bacterial infections associated with purple urine due to indican.

Clarity of urine specimen

Terms used to describe turbidity: clear, hazy, cloudy, turbid, milky.

Specific Gravity (SG)

A measure of the density of urine compared to distilled water, reflecting renal concentrating ability and hydration.

Urinometer

An instrument used to measure the specific gravity of urine, less accurate due to temperature effects.

Harmonic Oscillation Densitometry (HOD)

A method for measuring specific gravity that offers more accuracy compared to a urinometer.