Urine Sediment Evaluation
Urine Sediment Evaluation
Urine Sediment Evaluation
TALK
Urine-Titled to Know:
Urine Sediment Evaluation
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Overall cellularity can be assessed,
and bacteria, parasites, and other infectious agents can be seen. Next, proceed to the high-power (40) objective
lens while slightly increasing the light
and raising the condenser.
Stained Urine Sediment
Supravital Sediment
A wet preparation may be desired as
a follow-up to enhance the refractive
index for examination (see Wet- and
Dry-Preparation Stains). One advantage of the supravital stain is that
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Proofing:
Romanowsky Sediment
When cellular elements are difficult
to identify, the preferred (and simple)
method is to make a dry-preparation
or air-dried cytology slide (see Wetand Dry-Preparation Stains, previous page). The slide is stained with
a Romanowsky-type stain, such as
Diff-Quik. There is comfort in viewing an air-dried cytology slide on oil
immersion because of its correlation
Problems may result from a supravital stain that can actually make the
identification more complicated; for
example, if bacteria and stain precipitant accumulate over time and are
not filtered, they can be unintentionally added to the urine sediment.
In addition, the stain will occasionally stain cytoplasm the same color
as the nucleus, making it difficult to
clearly differentiate them. To see nuclear and cytoplasmic detail, particularly when identifying nuclear criteria
of malignancy, oil immersion is needed, which the supravital wet preparation does not allow.
2.27 x 9.7
Conclusion
Microscopic examination of urine
sediment is a rapid, easy-to-perform
diagnostic procedure that provides
valuable information. To be of greatest value, efforts must be made to
standardize the performance and reporting of results. Unstained and
air-dried cytology can enhance the
amount of information for reliable
results.
See Aids & Resources, back page,
for references & suggested reading.