What Is Urine Dipstick Test?
A urine dipstick test is the fastest way to test urine. The procedure involves dipping a specially treated paper strip into a sample of urine. The results are generally obtainable within 60 to 120 seconds. The sample does not require to be sent to a laboratory for a urine dipstick test, although if the test is abnormal, it might need to do another sample to be sent for further testing in a laboratory. The test is also called a rapid urine test. Urine is normally sterile, which means it is totally free of germs (bacteria) and only has in it waste products from all of the millions of chemical reactions in the body all of the time. But in some situations, chemicals that should not usually be there get through the filtering systems in the kidneys and get into the urine. This is where urine dipstick testing is done.
When Is a Urine Dipstick Test Done?
A urinalysis is a simple urine test to diagnose various disorders that include -
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To Diagnose a Medical Condition - A urinalysis might be requested if there is back pain, abdominal pain, frequent or painful urination, blood in the urine (hematuria), or other urinary conditions. A urine test helps to diagnose the cause of these symptoms.
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To Check Overall Health - A urinalysis can be part of a routine medical examination, pregnancy checkup, or pre-surgery preparation. Or it might be used to rule out a variety of disorders, such as kidney disease, diabetes, or liver disease, when the associated symptoms are present.
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To Monitor a Medical Condition - If a patient is diagnosed with medical problems, such as urinary tract infection or kidney disease, the physician can recommend testing the urine regularly to monitor the condition and treatment.
Other tests, such as drug screenings, and pregnancy screening, depend on urinalysis too.
What Is the Procedure for a Urine Dipstick Test?
To undergo a urine dipstick test, the medical professional needs a sample of the urine. This needs to be put in a sterile container. Sterile implies it has no living germs (bacteria) in it. The urine is collected in a sterile container.
To get the sample, the patient needs to urinate into the container provided. Ideally, they should not urinate somewhere else and then transmit it to the special pot, as then it will not be sterile anymore. The best selection is one which is called a midstream specimen of urine. This means when the patient starts to urinate, the container is brought into the urine stream and removed from there once there is enough urine in it. The urination need not be stopped while doing this. Tightly put the cap on the pot, then wash the hands.
The doctor will use a urine testing strip to test the urine. There are various types of urine testing strips that test for the presence of various substances in the urine. The strip has squares on it that change color in the presence of specific substances. The strip is then compared to a chart on the side of the urine testing strip box. Usually, the more intense the color change, the more of the substance there is in the urine.
The doctor or nurse may look over the dipstick result. However, sometimes the patient might be asked to watch the urine at home. Some urine dipsticks test for one or two of the abnormalities. Others test for many of these substances. To read the dipstick, the following method is followed:
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Have a urine sample in a pot as explained above.
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Dip the stick into the urine sample, and make sure all the test zones on the stick are immersed.
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Remove the stick, tap to remove extra urine, and hold it horizontally so urine does not leak.
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Review on the label of the dipstick bottle how long it is required to wait (the period of time varies for the different tests, usually from 30 seconds to 2 minutes).
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After the appropriate time, hold the dipstick against the color chart on the dipstick bottle and match it.
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Each test will be color-coded, and there are various shades of that color. A darker shade on the dipstick indicates that there is more of the appropriate substance like blood, glucose, etc. in the urine.
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Record the result with the matching color on the tag, this may be given in the form of '+' signs or numbers.
What Do the Test Results of the Urine Dipstick Test Indicate?
There are three ways to investigate urine, and the test might use all of them. One is a visual examination, which reviews color and clarity. If the urine contains blood in it, it may be red or dark brown. Foamy urine can be a sign of kidney disease, while cloudy urine may indicate an infection. Secondly, a microscopic examination of urine checks for the presence of substances that are too small to be seen with the naked eye. Some of the substances that should not be in the urine normally that a microscopic examination include -
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White blood cells (WBCs).
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Red blood cells (RBCs).
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Bacteria.
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Crystals (substances forming a kidney stone).
The third part of the urine test is the dipstick test, which uses a thin plastic strip treated with chemicals. It is dipped into the urine, and the chemicals on the stick react and change color if the levels are abnormal. The conditions a dipstick test can check for include:
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If the urine contains acid it is abnormal, it indicates that there is a presence of kidney stones, a urinary tract infection (UTI), or another condition.
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The presence of protein in the urine indicates that the kidneys are not working well. Kidneys filter waste products from the blood and form the urine.
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High sugar content in the urine is a marker for diabetes.
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White blood cells are a sign of infection or inflammation, either in the kidneys or anywhere else along the urinary tract.
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The presence of nitrites means that there is an infection with certain kinds of bacteria.
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If bilirubin (a waste product), which is normally eliminated by the liver, is present, it means the liver is not working properly.
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Hematuria (blood in urine) sometimes is a sign of infections or certain illnesses.
Conclusion
A urine dipstick test is usually done as part of a urinalysis, but it also can be done alone, depending on the physician’s concerns. Once a urine sample is gathered, a nurse or technician will place a specially treated chemical strip (dipstick) into the urine (pee). Patches on the dipstick will change color to suggest the existence of such things as white cells, protein, or glucose. The results of a urine dipstick test may suggest a urinary tract infection (UTI), diabetes, kidney disease, or a urinary tract injury. If test results are abnormal, additional tests will be required before a definite diagnosis can be made.
