Do you know your many medical conditions can be tracked with simple urine test?

Urine is a liquid made by the kidneys. It contains excess water and the body’s waste product.

From the kidney, our urine travels to our ureters and then our bladder, where it is stored until we are ready to urinate.

As a result of their containing waste from our body, a urine sample is an essential health monitor for the average human. With a urine test, a doctor can check for an array of medical health issues and, just by the looks and smell, can tell whether a patient is severely dehydrated, approaching diabetes, or needs immediate medical attention.

Urine Test

Some of the common medical conditions that a urine sample may be used to detect are:

1.       Pregnancy:

Whether with an at-home pregnancy test kit or a laboratory test, a urine sample can help detect the human chorionic gonadotrophin hormone (a hormone produced by the placenta during pregnancy) in your urine about a week after you’ve missed your period.

However, note that fertility drugs and some medications that contain HCG might cause a false positive or negative with an at-home pregnancy test, unlike a pregnancy test conducted in a diagnostic centre.

2.       Kidney disease:

Given that urine reveals waste contents and its presence in the body, it often gives away the health status of our kidneys.

When testing your kidney health using your urine, our lab technician will look for increased protein levels and albumin-creatinine ratio, amongst others.

3.       Diabetes:

A urine sample is also useful in screening for diabetes, revealing ketone, and glucose levels.

4.       Drug abuse/use:

Since traces of drugs consumed appear in our urine anywhere from a few days to a few weeks after we take them, testing a urine sample is another way to uncover whether a person has been abusing hard drugs and other substances.

5.       Urinary tract infections (UTIs):

Another medical condition that a urine sample analysis can detect is UTIs. This can be done with a microscopic examination of the patient’s urine for bacteria, yeast in the urine, or white blood cells which may be causing a UTI.

6.       Sexually transmitted diseases & infections:

A urine test is a non-invasive way to detect bacterial transmitted STDs such as gonorrhea and chlamydia.

7.       Cancer:

In most cases, hematuria (blood in the urine) is usually the body’s first symptom of bladder, ureter, and kidney cancers. As such, urine analysis is inexpensive to detect cancer in the body, although follow-up tests are necessary for confirmation.

Urine Test

8.       Typhoid:

While a blood sample is usually the most common sample collected for a typhoid test, a typhoid diagnosis can also be made with pee or poo culture. Thus, if you are scared of needles, but need a typhoid test, worry no more.

9.       HIV:

Because HIV antibodies can be detected in urine, fluid from the mouth, or blood, a urine test is also a non-invasive way to test for the virus.

Nonetheless, note that a blood test is generally preferred for HIV status testing and will be recommended if a fluid test confirms an HIV infection.

How to book an appointment for urine test

Click here to schedule an appointment to perform a urine test with Afriglobal Medicare for any of the above medical conditions or book a general wellness checkup.

You can also walk into any of our test centers for prompt diagnostics attention or call us on 016291000 or 016290998 with all your enquiries.

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