Urinalysis and Body Fluids: Color and Clarity

Flashcards covering terminology and clinical correlations for urine color and clarity based on the MLS 415 lecture notes.

Urochrome

The yellow pigment of urine produced from endogenous metabolism and excreted at a constant rate, which can be used to estimate specimen concentration.

Uroerythrin

The pink pigment found in urine.

Urobilin

The orange pigment found in urine.

Amber

The term used to describe the darkest classification of normal urine color (Level 5).

Yellow foam

A clinical correlation associated with the presence of high levels of Bilirubin in dark yellow to amber urine.

Phenazopyridine (Pyridium)

A drug that is a known cause of orange urine color.

Beets

A food source that can cause red urine color.

Porphyrins

Inherited constituents that cause urine to appear purple to red.

Myoglobin

A constituent, often associated with Methemoglobin, that results in a brown urine color.

Homogentisic acid

An inherited constituent that causes urine to appear dark brown or black.

Pseudomonas

A type of infection (UTI) that can result in blue or green urine.

Amitriptyline

A medication that may cause urine to appear blue or green.

Slightly Cloudy (Hazy)

Clarity terminology used when visible matter is present but words are not obscured.

Cloudy

Clarity terminology used when visible matter is present and words are obscured or blurred.

Turbid

Clarity terminology used when newsprint words cannot be seen through the urine specimen.

Brick dust

A pink precipitant found in acidic urine, typically considered a nonpathogenic cause of turbidity.

Amorphous phosphates

A nonpathogenic cause of white turbidity in alkaline urine.

Squamous epithelial cells

A nonpathogenic cause of urine turbidity often confirmed during microscopic examination.

Pathogenic Turbidity

Cloudiness caused by disease processes such as inflammation, containing WBCs, RBCs, bacteria (in fresh urine), yeast, or renal epithelial cells.