A urinalysis is very useful for determining if there are any diseases that involve the urinary tract. It can even be used to monitor the status of some diseases. Certain congenital disorders, toxins, medications, infections, injuries and diseases all have the potential of causing harm. An insufficient amount of oxygen can be harmful as well.
Acute Tubular Necrosis
Every kidney has approximately 1 million structures called nephrons. A nephron includes capillaries and a long tubule where urine is created. Acute tubular necrosis refers to injured kidney tubules. The two main causes of this disorder are toxins that harm the kidney and low levels of blood and oxygen, as explained by Suzanne Watnick, M.D., director of the dialysis unit at the Portland VA Medical Center in "Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment." A urinalysis will show "muddy brown" casts or granular casts. These are blood cells, proteins and cell debris that stuck to each other in the tubule and formed a rectangular shape.
Analgesic Nephropathy
The long-term use of large amounts of aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and acetaminophen damages the kidneys and causes analgesic nephropathy. This disease primarily affects women aged 50 to 55 years old and causes 3 to 5 percent of renal failure, according to Navin Jaipaul, M.D., nephrologist at the VA Loma Linda Healthcare System in "The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals." People will have proteinuria, or protein in their urine, and white blood cell casts. These are white blood cells, cell debris and proteins that have stuck together and formed a rectangular shape.
Glomerulonephritis
Glomerulonephritis is the overall term for the inflammation of the glomeruli, or the network of capillaries within the kidneys. With acute glomerulonephritis, people suddenly have proteinuria and hematuria, or blood in their urine. Chronic glomerulonephritis refers to damage that slowly develops over the years and usually results in renal failure. In rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis, the kidneys fail in just weeks or months, writes Benjamin Parker, M.D., of the division of nephrology at the University of California in "Pathophysiology of Disease: An Introduction to Clinical Medicine." The urinalysis in glomerulonephritis not only shows protein and blood in the urine, but red blood cell casts as well.
Diabetic Nephropathy
In diabetes mellitus type 1, people have high glucose levels in the bloodstream because their pancreas cannot release insulin to keep the levels normal. In type 2 diabetes mellitus, the organs and tissues are resistant to insulin. Diabetes causes many problems, including diabetic nephropathy, or the damage that it causes to the kidneys. It is the main cause of chronic renal failure, per Jill Crandall, M.D., associate professor of clinical medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in "The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals." It causes the glomeruli capillaries to get thick and hard. Microalbuminuria, or albumin protein in the urinalysis, means the kidneys are damaged and are not holding on to protein.
References
- "Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment 2010"; Stephen McPhee, M.D., Maxine Papadakis, M.D.; 2010
- "Pathophysiology of Disease: An Introduction to Clinical Medicine"; Stephen McPhee, M.D., Gary Hammer, M.D., Ph.D.; 2010
- The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals: Diabetes Mellitus
- The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals: Tubulointerstitial Nephritis
