Hematuria (blood in urine)

 

Hematuria is the medical term for the symptom of having blood in your urine. Most of the time, hematuria isn’t painful. But it can be sign of something serious, so it’s important to see your doctor to find out what’s causing it.

Microscopic hematuria is when the blood is not visible to the naked eye. This is usually noticed when you have routine urine tests done.

If there’s enough blood that you can see it, it’s called gross hematuria. Your urine may look pink, brown or dark red. You may notice blood clots in the urine.

You should seek emergency care or call 911 if you can’t urinate, see blood clots in your urine or have blood in your urine along with any of the following conditions:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Fever              
• Chills
• Pain in your side, back or abdomen

Causes of blood in urine

The most common cause of blood in the urine is an infection in your urinary tract (UTI), which includes your bladder and your kidneys. Other causes of peeing blood are:

• Bladder or kidney stones
• Enlarged prostate
• Kidney disease
• Cancer of the urinary tract, kidney or prostate
• Some medications (penicillin, aspirin, blood thinners)
• Polycystic kidney disease
• Sickle cell disease
• Trauma or injury to the urethra, bladder or kidneys
• Blood clots and blood-clotting disorders
• Vigorous exercis

Risk factors for hematuria

Blood in your urine is more likely if one of these things is present:

• Family history of kidney disease
• Enlarged prostate
• History of kidney stones
• Bacterial or viral infection like streptococcus or hepatitis

Diagnosis, testing & treating hematuria

If you have blood in your urine, you should go to your doctor to see what’s causing it. They’ll start by asking you about your symptoms and your medical history. They’ll perform a physical exam and take urine and blood samples for testing.

Sometimes your doctor will order imaging tests such as a CT scan or a kidney ultrasound. They may do a cystoscopy, which uses a tiny camera to look at the inside of your bladder and urethra to help find the cause of blood in your urine.

Treatments for hematuria

Once your doctor knows what’s causing the problem, they’ll work with you to decide the best treatment plan to meet your needs. For example, if your hematuria is due to a urinary tract infection, your doctor may prescribe antibiotics to cure the infection.

If you have kidney stones, your doctor may use one of these methods to treat them.

• Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL): Using sound waves to break the stones into tiny pieces that can pass out of your body in your urine.
• Ureteroscope: The scope is inserted through your urethra and up through the urinary tract to find the stones, break them up and remove them.