Blood in the Urine
symptom
Also called hematuria, blood in the urine is a condition that should always be checked out by a physician, even if it quickly goes away.
It can occur as either noticeably visible (hematuria) or visible only under a microscope (microhematuria). In either case, the evaluation is the same. Blood in the urine can only come from the organs which transport the urine, so the entire renal system is typically evaluated. The urine is viewed under a microscope for the presence of abnormal or cancerous cells and cultured for the presence of bacteria. Other tests that view the whole urinary tract are a CT (computed tomography) scan, an IVP (intravenous pyelogram which is a type of X-ray) and cytoscopy.
Some causes are UTIs (urinary tract infections), other various renal problems including stones, benign prostate enlargement, Alport Syndrome, Nail-Patella Syndrome, Proteinuric Syndrom and cancer. However in many cases no cause is found and the problem is considered benign, requiring periodic checkups with the physician to determine that it remains so.
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