Seeing Blood in the urine is a significant symptom that may be an initial symptom of different conditions affecting the urinary tract.
Types
- Visible Haematuria – passing visible blood in the urine
- Invisible Haematuria – Urine found by testing (dipstick test or lab test)
Treatments Available
What are the causes?
The blood in the urine either visible or visible may be caused by bleeding from anywhere in the urinary tract that starts from kidneys right down to the urethra due to different disease conditions (both benign and sinister) that may affect these organs.
Common Causes of Haematuria Kidneys:
- Tumours, Stones, infections
- Ureters – Stones, tumours
- Bladder – Tumours, stones, infection
- Prostate – cancer, benign enlargement of prostate
What should I do?
You should seek medical attention as soon as possible. If the bleeding lasts more than 24 hours and if you start to feel weak, you may have to seek emergency medical help.
What will happen?
You will undergo a clinical examination by your doctor and he or she will arrange for a referral to an Urologist for further tests.
The urologist may arrange for the following tests.
- Bladder examination (Cystoscopy): This is the examination of your bladder using an endoscope passed through the urethra. Usually this is done under local anaesthetic while you are awake. A gen that contains the local anaesthetic will be inserted into the urethra and the endoscope will be passed. The procedure usually takes 1-3 minutes after the introduction of the endoscope. This will help to rule out or diagnose conditions in the bladder like bladder tumour, bladder stones and inflammation or abnormal patches in the bladder. Usually the urologist may take tissue samples (biopsies) for any abnormal areas or arrange for this to be done under general anaesthetic.
- Ultrasound scan or a CT scan: to assess your kidneys for stones or tumours.
- Special urine tests: to look for any abnormal cells (Cytology)
- Retrograde study & Ureteroscopy: If there is any persistent doubts or if you have persistent bleeding in the urine in spite of normal tests, they may want to examine the tubes from both kidneys (ureters) by doing special x-rays that includes passage of x-ray contrast substance into the ureters through cystoscopy and may pass an endoscope all the way up to the kidney. As mentioned above, this is necessary only in selected patients.