Preparation for the urine test: does the urine for the test have to be in the morning?

Urine testing is one of the basic diagnostic tests, but in order to show the true picture of the patient's health, you must be properly prepared for it. Which container to buy for urine culture and which one for general urine analysis? What should the preparation for a general urine test look like, what should you pay attention to before submitting a urine sample for culture? 

How much urine should be provided for testing, does the urine have to be in the morning? In this article, we suggest how to properly collect a urine sample for testing.

Preparations for a general urine test worth starting early

Few patients are aware that there are several factors that are worth paying attention to on the day before giving a urine sample. Preparation for a general urine test includes following a few recommendations:

• a normal diet should be used, but we try to avoid a high-protein diet immediately before the examination;
• do not drink alcohol the day and night before the urine test;
• 1-2 days before giving a urine sample, we try to avoid strenuous physical activity, which may contribute to an increase in the amount of ketone bodies and protein in the urine;
• we avoid giving a urine sample for testing about 2 days before and 2 days after the end of menstruation;
• some medications may adversely affect the results of the general urine test and urine culture test, so it is worth consulting your doctor in advance.

What container to buy for urine culture, and what for the general urine test? What to pay attention to when using urine containers?

When preparing for a urinalysis or urine culture, consider purchasing a suitable container. Which container to buy for urine culture and which one for urine analysis, is there a difference?

Now that we know what container to buy for urine culture, it is worth paying attention to a few basic rules for its use:

• What should be the urine culture container? Ccompletely sterile, i.e. devoid of any microorganisms. That is why we open the plastic bag in which we bought the container at the pharmacy only before collecting the urine sample.
• When we unscrew the sterile urine container, we try do not touch the inside of the container and the inside of the cap with your hands (put it in a clean place, upside down).
• How we want to prepare the urine for the culture test when collecting a urine sample in a sterile container do not touch its edge to the urethral opening.
• After collecting the urine sample, close the container tightly, remembering to do not touch the inside of the lid.

Does the urine for testing have to be in the morningwhat to do if you get up at night to go to the toilet?

When preparing for a urinalysis or urine culture test, why is the patient always informed that the first morning urine sample should be delivered to the laboratory? Does the urine for testing always have to be in the morning, what if we always get up to go to the toilet during the night, which urine can then be considered morning?

Does the urine for testing have to be absolutely morning?

In emergencies, it is acceptable to perform a urine test from a sample collected at another time of the day. However, it should be taken into account changes in the composition of the urine among others due to food intake and physical activity.

Now that we know whether urine needs to be tested in the morning - what to do if we get up to go to the toilet during the night? In this case, it is recommended to collect samples from urine passed in the morning, after getting up from bed (preferably when the morning urine is passed at least 4 hours since the last visit to the toilet).

How to prepare urine for testing, which is a simple instruction on how to properly collect urine into the container

If in the morning, after getting out of bed, we have to collect a urine sample for testing, it is worth knowing how to prepare for it properly:

• First of all, it should wash your hands thoroughly and dry them, preferably using a disposable paper towel (although in preparation for a general urine test, you can use a regular, clean towel that we have in the bathroom).
• We put a urine container nearby.
• If we want to prepare the urine well for the test, before urinating, it is necessary wash the urethral area thoroughly with water and a little soap. Then dry the skin, preferably with a disposable paper towel.

Remember to keep the direction from the front to the back when washing and drying the crotch area, so as not to transfer bacteria from the anus to the urethra (for anatomical reasons, this is especially important in women).

• Unscrew the urine container with clean hands.
• Sitting down on the toilet bowl, we begin urination: for the first 1-2 sec. urine should go to the toilet (first stream of urine). Then, without interrupting the micturition, place the urine container under it and catch the middle stream of urine into it. When the container is 1/2 or 2/3 full, gently set it aside. If you're still urinating, it should have gone to the toilet by now.
• Close the container tightly.
• How to prepare urine for testing - on the container write your details and deliver the collected urine to the test site as soon as possible (preferably within 2 hours).

Hom many Mhow many liters (ml) of urine should be provided for urinalysis, and how much for culture?

Since we already know how to prepare urine for the test, it is also worth answering another question bothering patients: how much urine for testing should be provided in one sample? 

In the case of general urine analysis, it is usually recommended to fill 1/2 or 2/3 of the container with urine (approx. 50-100 ml), while for urine culture testing, the amount of urine in the sample is usually smaller (even a few milliliters).

How much urine to provide for testing should always be specified in recommendations, which are worth getting acquainted with in advance, in a given laboratory. If you have any doubts about how many milliliters of urine you should provide for a specific urine test, it is worth talking to your doctor or an employee of a given laboratory about it.