OVERVIEW
What is Albumin?
Albumin is the protein which is made by the liver & it helps keep fluid in bloodstream such that it doesn’t leak into other tissues. It is involved in carrying substances throughout the body like hormones, enzymes & vitamins. Albumin stays in blood & none is detected in urine if kidney functions properly.
What is Microalbuminuria (Spot Urine) lab test?
Microalbuminuria can be defined as a condition where levels of albumin is ranging from 30 to 300 mg/day. And this albumin is detected in urine when there is early stage of kidney disease. Therefore, the urine albumin test (previously called microalbumin test) detects & measures the concentration of albumin in urine to help screen kidney diseases. With passing time term “microalbuminuria” has been replaced with term “albuminuria” which means any elevation of albumin in urine. The spot urine test (first-morning sample) for microalbuminuria is used as an alternative to the gold standard test i.e. 24 hour urine lab test; as the spot urine test has high correlation with 24-hour albumin excretion.
Why is microalbuminuria spot urine lab test done?
It is done because:
- Even a small amount of albumin in urine pose as an early indicator of kidney disease. This small amount of albumin in urine is sometimes called microalbuminuria or urine microalbumin.
- People with consistent detectable small concentrations of albumin in urine can be detected for increased risk of progressive kidney failure & cardiovascular diseases.
- The test can be done in conjunction with creatinine test to provide albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) as when kidney function is damaged, creatinine levels decrease while albumin increases in urine.
- It helps screen kidney disease in chronic conditions like diabetes & hypertension (high blood pressure).
- What is considered as normal range for microalbumin in urine?
A range less than 30 mg is normal.
- What is the purpose of microalbuminuria test?
This test simply detects & measures albumin amount in urine to screen kidney diseases.
- What are the methods for detecting microalbumin in urine?
It can be screened via either measuring total urine albumin in 12 or 24 hours collection, measurement of urine albumin in morning urine or via taking a random sample.
- What is meant by a spot urine test?
A test in which you collect one sample of urine and preferably early in the morning, to detect albumin levels present in it.
- Which are the first signs of kidney problem?
Acute kidney failure signs include decreased urine output, fluid retention (swelling in legs/ankles/feet), & shortness of breath.
INTERPRETATION OF THE RESULTS:
- “Normal” (less than 30 mg of protein): indicates that kidney function is normal
- “Microalbuminuria” (30 to 300mg of protein): indicates early kidney disease
- “Macroalbuminuria” (greater than 300 mg of protein): indicates more advanced kidney disease
Factors contributing to higher than normal microalbumin results include:
- Fever
- Hematuria (blood in urine)
- Vigorous exercise
- Dehydration
- UTI (urinary tract infection)
- Medications
This test is done to screen & detect early kidney diseases in people suffering from diabetes (diabetes 1 & diabetes 2) & other risk factors like hypertension.