BACKGROUND: GPs in England and Wales are required to perform screening urinalysis on all newly registered patients. The value of this practice, however, is unclear. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to identify the prevalence of persistent urine abnormalities and to establish the added value of screening for both haematuria and proteinuria in a large cohort of young adults in the UK. METHODS: Urine screening was carried out in a cohort of young adults in a student health centre and a university hospital nephrology unit in a large British city. University students enrolling for health screening in a university health centre over a 2-year period were tested for haematuria and/or proteinuria by dipstick urinalysis. Subjects with persistent urine abnormalities were evaluated for the presence of significant renal tract pathology. RESULTS: Of 3808 students screened, 3570 provided an initial urine sample; 220 were abnormal. Of these, 38 (1% of original cohort) had persistent abnormalities (haematuria, 14; proteinuria, 16; both, eight). Subjects with isolated haematuria or proteinuria did not have significant pathology. In contrast, all the students with both haematuria and proteinuria had identifiable renal disease. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings do not support the value of routine screening for proteinuria or haematuria in young adults. However, the combination of haematuria and proteinuria is a powerful predictor for parenchymal renal disease. Thus, if proteinuria is detected, further testing for haematuria should be performed.
BACKGROUND: GPs in England and Wales are required to perform screening urinalysis on all newly registered patients. The value of this practice, however, is unclear. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to identify the prevalence of persistent urine abnormalities and to establish the added value of screening for both haematuria and proteinuria in a large cohort of young adults in the UK. METHODS: Urine screening was carried out in a cohort of young adults in a student health centre and a university hospital nephrology unit in a large British city. University students enrolling for health screening in a university health centre over a 2-year period were tested for haematuria and/or proteinuria by dipstick urinalysis. Subjects with persistent urine abnormalities were evaluated for the presence of significant renal tract pathology. RESULTS: Of 3808 students screened, 3570 provided an initial urine sample; 220 were abnormal. Of these, 38 (1% of original cohort) had persistent abnormalities (haematuria, 14; proteinuria, 16; both, eight). Subjects with isolated haematuria or proteinuria did not have significant pathology. In contrast, all the students with both haematuria and proteinuria had identifiable renal disease. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings do not support the value of routine screening for proteinuria or haematuria in young adults. However, the combination of haematuria and proteinuria is a powerful predictor for parenchymal renal disease. Thus, if proteinuria is detected, further testing for haematuria should be performed.
Authors: W S Smellie; J O Forth; C A M McNulty; L Hirschowitz; D Lilic; R Gosling; D Bareford; E Logan; K G Kerr; G P Spickett; J Hoffman; A Galloway; C A Bloxham Journal: J Clin Pathol Date: 2006-02 Impact factor: 3.411
Authors: David F Friedlander; Matthew J Resnick; Chaochen You; Jeffrey Bassett; Vidhush Yarlagadda; David F Penson; Daniel A Barocas Journal: Am J Med Date: 2014-01-28 Impact factor: 4.965
Authors: Wassim Kassouf; Armen Aprikian; Peter Black; Girish Kulkarni; Jonathan Izawa; Libni Eapen; Adrian Fairey; Alan So; Scott North; Ricardo Rendon; Srikala S Sridhar; Tarik Alam; Fadi Brimo; Normand Blais; Chris Booth; Joseph Chin; Peter Chung; Darrel Drachenberg; Yves Fradet; Michael Jewett; Ron Moore; Chris Morash; Bobby Shayegan; Geoffrey Gotto; Neil Fleshner; Fred Saad; D Robert Siemens Journal: Can Urol Assoc J Date: 2016-02-08 Impact factor: 1.862