Development and Validation of Equations to Estimate 24-H Urinary Sodium Excretion from Urine Samples of Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease.

INTRODUCTION: The assessment of sodium intake is difficult due to low accuracy of dietary records and to the inconvenience of 24-h urine collections. Therefore, equations based on spot urine samples have been proposed to estimate sodium intake. In this study, we aimed to develop and to validate equations to estimate 24-h urinary sodium excretion (24hUNa) from several urine samples in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. METHODS: Cross-sectional study with 76 CKD patients (males 55.3%; age: 64.5 [56.0-69.0] years; glomerular filtration rate 27.8 [24.7-32.1] mL/min). Sodium excretion was measured in 12-h daytime and 12-h nighttime collections; spot 1 (first urine of the day) and spot 2 (second urine of the day). By multivariable linear regression analysis, 4 equations were developed. The equations' accuracy was evaluated by P30 test. Association between estimated and measured 24hUNa was assessed by intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC); mean differences and limits of agreement by Bland-Altman plot. Data from 51 CKD patients of other CKD outpatient clinic were used to validate the equation developed from spot 2. RESULTS: The 4 equations showed significant (p < 0.001) ICC and relatively good accuracy when compared to 24hUNa (Daytime: ICC = 0.89; P30 = 84%; Nighttime: ICC = 0.90; P30 = 83%; spot 1: ICC = 0.85; P30 = 78%; and spot 2: ICC = 0.70; P30 = 76%). In validation set, the equation from spot 2 was moderately accurate (P30 = 67%). Mean bias and ICC were 19.9 mmol/day and 0.58 (p = 0.001), respectively. A high sensitivity (97%) and specificity (89%) were found for a cutoff of 3.6 g of sodium/day. CONCLUSION: Equations derived from 12 h collections better performed than spot urine when compared to gold standard 24hUNa. The equation from spot 2 showed good sensitivity to identify excessive sodium intake.

Non-performance of urinalysis among pregnant women in Brazil.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to measure the prevalence, evaluate the trend and identify the factors associated with the non-performance of qualitative urine test (QUT) among pregnant women living in the extreme south of Brazil between 2007 and 2016. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: All births occurred in the local maternity wards from January 1 to December 31 of 2007, 2010, 2013 and 2016. Mothers were interviewed within 48h after delivery. The outcome was the non-performance of QUT during pregnancy. χ2 test was used to compare proportions and Poisson regression with robust variance adjustment for the multivariate analysis. The effect measure used was the prevalence ratio. FINDINGS: Of the 10,331 new mothers identified, 10,004 (96.8 percent) performed at least one prenatal visit. The prevalence of non-performance of QUT was 3.3 percent (95% CI 2.9-3.7 percent), ranging from 1.5 percent in 2007 to 5.3 percent in 2016 ( p<0.001). The analysis showed that not living with a companion, having under four years of schooling, living with seven or more people in the household, having five or more children, having had one to three prenatal visits and not having been supplemented with ferrous sulfate during pregnancy showed a significantly higher prevalence rate to the non-performance of QUT. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The rate of non-performance of this test among pregnant women has clearly increased. Mothers at higher risk of unfavorable outcomes in pregnancy were the ones with the highest probability of not performing QUT. Increasing the number of prenatal visits is a high-impact measure toward the performance of this test.

Age-related decline in urine concentration may not be universal: Comparative study from the U.S. and two small-scale societies.

OBJECTIVES: Evidence from industrialized populations suggests that urine concentrating ability declines with age. However, lifestyle factors including episodic protein intake and low hypertension may help explain differences between populations. Whether this age-related decline occurs among small-scale populations with active lifestyles and non-Western diets is unknown. We test the universality of age-related urine concentration decline. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used urine specific gravity (Usg) and urine osmolality (Uosm) data from 15,055 U.S. nonpregnant adults without kidney failure aged 18-80 in 2007-2012 participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). We tested the relationship of age on urine concentration biomarkers with multiple linear regressions using survey commands. We compared results to longitudinal data on Usg from 116 Tsimane' forager-horticulturalists (266 observations) adults aged 18-83 in 2013-2014 from Lowland Bolivia, and to 38 Hadza hunter-gatherers (156 observations) aged 18-75 in 2010-2015 from Tanzania using random-effects panel linear regressions. RESULTS: Among U.S. adults, age was significantly negatively associated with Usg (Adjusted beta [B] = -0.0009 g/mL/10 years; SE = 0.0001; p < 0.001) and Uosm (B = -28.1 mOsm/kg/10 yr; SE = 2.4; p < 0.001). In contrast, among Tsimane' (B = 0.0003 g/mL/10 yr; SE = 0.0002; p = 0.16) and Hadza (B = -0.0004 g/mL/10 yr; SE = 0.0004; p = 0.29) age was not associated with Usg. Older Tsimane' and Hadza exhibited similar within-individual variability in Usg equivalent to younger adults. DISCUSSION: While U.S. adults exhibited age-related declines in urine concentration, Tsimane' and Hadza adults did not exhibit the same statistical decline in Usg. Mismatches between evolved physiology and modern environments in lifestyle may affect kidney physiology and disease risk.

Evaluation of the BacterioScan 216Dx for Standalone Preculture Screen of Preserved Urine Specimens in a Clinical Setting.

BACKGROUND: The BacterioScan 216Dx laser microbial growth monitoring system was evaluated as an option for preurine culture screening of preserved urine specimens at an acute care medical center. METHODS: The BacterioScan 216Dx system performance characteristics and the economic impact (cost effectiveness) for the laboratory were assessed. Urinalysis performance compared to urine culture was assessed if urinalysis was ordered as part of the patient care set. RESULTS: When compared to urine culture, the BacterioScan had an overall performance with corresponding 95% confidence intervals of 76% (68-83) sensitivity, 84% (80-87) specificity, 55% (48-63) positive predictive value, and 93% (90-95) negative predictive value for 610 randomly selected preserved urine specimens. Urinalysis compared to urine culture overall performance was 59% (48-69) sensitivity, 87% (83-90) specificity, 53% (43-63) positive predictive value, 89% (86-92) negative predictive value for 414 urine specimens. CONCLUSIONS: While the system did improve the turnaround time to a negative report, adoption of the BacterioScan system would increase the reagent budget for laboratory urine culture by 2.34 times the current cost, potentially making BacterioScan prohibitive in a budget restricted environment. Additionally, performance when compared to traditional urine culture was less than acceptable for a diagnostic laboratory to use as a stand-alone urinary tract infection screen.

Litíase urinária e sua relação com os achados de cristalúria e hematúria na urinálise / Urolithiasis and its relation to the urinalysis findings of crystalluria and hematuria

Introdução: Litíase urinária é a formação de cálculos no trato urinário a partir de componentes presentes na urina. É uma doença crônica associada a um alto número de recorrência e hospitalizações. O objetivo do estudo foi verificar a frequência de cristalúria e a relação entre litíase urinária e os achados de cristalúria e hematúria em pacientes da região noroeste do estado do Rio Grande do Sul. Métodos: Estudo transversal no qual foram incluídos pacientes no período de março a dezembro de 2015. Exames qualitativos de urina e prontuários médicos foram revisados buscando-se dados de cristalúria e hematúria e diagnóstico da litíase. Resultados: Foram analisadas 688 amostras de urina, e 54 (7,85%) apresentaram cristalúria. Dos casos de cristalúria, cinco (9,3%) pacientes apresentaram litíase. Foi verificada significância estatística (p = 0,010) entre as variáveis de litíase e hemácias, mas não foi evidenciada significância estatística entre as variáveis de litíase e cristalúria (AU)

Introduction: Urolithiasis is the formation of stones in the urinary tract from urine components. It is a chronic disease associated high recurrence and hospitalization rates. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of crystalluria and the relation between urolithiasis and crystalluria and hematuria findings in patients of northwestern Rio Grande do Sul. Methods: A cross-sectional study that enrolled patients from March to December of 2015. Urinalyses and medical records were reviewed searching for crystalluria and hematuria data, and diagnosis of lithiasis. Results: 688 urine samples were analyzed, and crystalluria was found in 54 (7.85%) of them. Considering the crystalluria cases, 5 (9.3%) of the patients also had lithiasis. Statistical significance was found (p = 0.010) between the variables of lithiasis and red blood cells, but no statistical significance was found between the variables of lithiasis and crystalluria. Conclusion: Crystalluria was not associated with lithiasis, while hematuria was associated with such disease (AU)

[Socioeconomic differentials in performing urinalysis during prenatal care]. / Diferenciais socioeconômicos na realização de exame de urina no pré-natal.

OBJECTIVE: Urinalysis is an essential component of the prenatal routine, as urinary tract infections during pregnancy may lead to preterm delivery and neonatal morbidity. The objective of the study was to analyze factors associated to the solicitation of urinalysis during pregnancy. METHODS: During 2004, 4,163 women living in the urban area of Pelotas (Southern Brazil) and who had received prenatal care were interviewed after delivery in the maternity hospitals of the city. Prevalence of the non-performance of urinalysis was analyzed in relation to socioeconomic and demographic variables, as well as to characteristics of prenatal care. After a bivariate analysis, logistic regression was conducted to identify factors associated with the outcome, controlling for possible confusion factors at a 5% level of significance. RESULTS: The prevalence of not having had the test was 3%. The multivariate analysis showed that black skin color, poverty, low schooling, being unmarried and having fewer than six prenatal visits were associated with a higher probability of not carrying out the test. Women who were black, poor and with low schooling presented a 10% probability of not being examined, compared to 0.4% for mothers who were white, wealthy and highly educated. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the fact that urinalysis is essential for preventing complications for the mother and newborn, 3% of the women were not screened. Screening coverage may serve as an indicator to assess the quality of prenatal care. Pregnant women who are black, poor, with low schooling and unmarried should be targeted in programs for improving the quality of care.

Pediatricians' screening urinalysis practices.

OBJECTIVE: To determine pediatricians' routine screening urinalysis practices. STUDY DESIGN: This was a survey of a nationally representative sample of pediatricians practicing in the U.S. regarding their screening urinalysis practices in childhood. RESULTS: Of the 1502 pediatricians sampled, 653 eligible subjects participated, for an estimated response rate of 49.5%. The vast majority of participants (78%) routinely screen asymptomatic children with urinalysis in at least 1 age group. Pediatricians' screening urinalysis practice varies based on age group: 9% screen during infancy (<1 year), 60% screen during early childhood (1 up to 5 years), 55% screen during late childhood (5 to 12 years), and 58% screen during adolescence (13 to 20 years). The majority of pediatricians (58%) routinely screen more than 1 age group. Some 38% of the pediatricians surveyed believe that the overall health of children is improved by screening all asymptomatic children with urinalysis. CONCLUSIONS: Many pediatricians routinely conduct screening urinalysis during childhood, frequently at ages not recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Effects of experimental diabetes on the structure and ultrastructure of the coagulating gland of C57BL/6J and NOD mice.

Diabetes mellitus can lead to reproductive disorders that in turn result in weakened fertility brought about by morphofunctional changes in the testes and accessory sex glands. However, doubts persist concerning the basic biology of the secretory epithelial cells and the stroma of the coagulating gland of diabetic mice. Thus, the objective of the present study was to analyze the histological and ultrastructural changes associated with stereology of the coagulating gland of mice with alloxan-induced diabetes, and of spontaneously diabetic mice. Sixteen mice of the C57BL/6J strain, and eight non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice were used. The animals were divided into three groups: 1) control (C), 2) alloxan diabetic (AD), and 3) NOD. Thirty days after the detection of diabetic status in group 2, all of the animals were killed and then perfused with Karnovsky's solution through the left cardiac ventricle. The coagulating gland was then removed and processed for morphometric study by light microscopy and electron microscopy. The results showed thickening of the stroma, atrophy of secretory epithelial cells, and disorganization of the organelles involved in the secretory process in both NOD and alloxan-induced mice. Thus, it may be concluded that the coagulating gland suffered drastic morphological changes, and consequently impaired glandular function, in the presence of diabetes mellitus type I in both NOD and AD mice.

Ultrastructural study of the ventral lobe of the prostate of mice with streptozotocin induced diabetes (C57BL/6J).

Morphological and functional changes caused by diabetes in the accessory sex organs and especially the prostate have been reported by several investigators. The aim of the present study was to examine the possible deleterious effects of experimentally induced diabetes on the secretory epithelium of the ventral prostate of mice. Sixteen adult male C57BL/6J mice were divided into two groups. The diabetic group received a streptozotocin injection of 75 mg/kg, while the control group received only 0.1 ml citrate buffer, i.p. After 30 days, the diabetic state was ascertained, the animals were sacrificed and the ventral lobe of the prostate was collected for histological and ultrastructural examination. The results showed reduction in glandular epithelium cell height, increased numbers of cytoplasmic vacuoles and thickening of the extracellular matrix. In conclusion, experimental diabetes has harmful effects on the secretory epithelial cells of the ventral lobe of the prostate of mice.