Haematuria
Overview
What is Haematuria
Haematuria commonly known as blood in the urine. Haematuria most commonly presents in small quantities and is often picked up on a routine screening by a simple dipstick test. Haematuria can also be diagnosed when urine is examined under the microscope (microscopic haematuria) or seen as red or brown discolouration of the urine (macroscopic haematuria).
Symptoms
It is rare that patients under the age of 40 years with microscopic haematuria have a serious problem.
In all other cases the presence of haematuria should be investigated.
- 50% of patients with haematuria will have an abnormality
- 10% of patients with microscopic haematuria will have a malignancy
- 35% of patients with macroscopic haematuria will have an underlying tumour
Causes
Blood in the urine is commonly known as haematuria. Haematuria most commonly presents in small quantities and is often picked up on a routine screening by a simple dipstick test. Haematuria can also be diagnosed when urine is examined under the microscope (microscopic haematuria) or seen as red or brown discolouration of the urine (macroscopic haematuria).
Blood should not normally appear in the urine. The presence of blood therefore means that there could be a problem in any part of the urinary tract, from the kidneys, ureters, bladder, prostate gland or the urethra.
Diagnosis
A positive dipstick test for blood in isolation can often be distressing and in all cases where symptoms exist, physical examination must also be undertaken and further investigations performed to localise the cause.
All patients should be seen by a specialist urologist:
- A physical examination is required including a prostate examination for men and gynaecological organs in the female.
- Samples of urine must be sent for microscopy and culture [investigation of infection], and urine cytology [investigation of abnormal cells in the urine].
Treatment
Depending on the condition causing your hematuria, treatment might involve taking antibiotics to clear a urinary tract infection, trying a prescription medication to shrink an enlarged prostate or having shock wave therapy to break up bladder or kidney stones. In some cases, no treatment is necessary.
Be sure to follow up with your doctor after treatment to ensure there’s no more blood in your urine.
