What Causes Small Blood Clots In Urine: Unveiling The Answers

Have you ever found your urine color particularly reddish, so much so that you were concerned? Do not panic, although it is important to take this manifestation of blood in urine into consideration, in most cases its cause is benign.

This article will help answer a few questions like what can these small blood clots in urine be due to? Is it dangerous to have blood clots in your urine? How to recognize small blood clots? Prevalence among gender, symptoms interpretation, and various types of blood in urine.

The presence of blood clots in urine, medically, this is known as hematuria, is a genitourinary disorder that is characterized by traces of blood or abnormal coloration of urine.

Most of the time, it is an infection, but there are many other pathologies that can cause this bleeding. In all cases, it is necessary to consult a doctor to determine the cause and treat it.

If your urine turns red or pink, it is important to first ask yourself if it is blood. Several situations can, in fact, change the color of urine, including the consumption of certain foods such as beets, or certain berries or certain food colorings (rhodamine), taking certain medications (antibiotics such as rifampicin or metronidazole), certain laxatives, vitamin B12, etc.

It is therefore important to consult your doctor when urine shows an abnormal color, or in the event of urinary signs.

What Are The Types Of Blood In Urine

1. Microscopic hematuria

A very small presence of blood, invisible to the naked eye, only detectable through urine tests or strips. In general, they are diagnosed by chance, simply during urine tests prescribed for other symptoms. In this case of microscopic hematuria, urine tests should be replaced. If the presence of blood is confirmed, even in small quantities, it becomes important to consult a doctor.

Types of blood in urine

2. Macroscopic hematuria

Is immediately visible to the naked eye, with urine of different shades, ranging from pink to brownish red.  After the first revealing analyses, the same procedure applies: new tests must be carried out, and a consultation is recommended if these also turn out to be positive.

3. Stress hematuria

These two types of hematuria are also added stress hematuria, which can be both microscopic and macroscopic. It results from physical shocks or repeated microtrauma to the kidneys and bladder and is observed mainly in experienced athletes, such as those who participate in marathons.

What Are They Causes Of Hematuria

Hematuria can have several causes. The most prevalent causes of hematuria are:

  • A urinary infection ( acute cystitis)
  • A kidney infection (pyelonephritis)
  • Urinary/kidney lithiasis (stones)
  • Kidney disease ( nephropathy such as glomerulonephritis)
  • Prostatitis or enlarged prostate in men.
  • Trauma (blow)
  • Furthermore, menstrual bleeding or vaginal bleeding can, in women, color the urine in a deceptive way.

Prevalence Among Gender

As a result of female urethra location, they are more susceptible to urinary tract infections which are major causes of blood in urine. In a lifetime, 40 to 60 percent of women experience urinary tract infections which may eventually lead to the presence of small blood in their urine.

However, in most cases, as explained earlier, vaginal bleeding often presents a false appearance of small blood in urine.

Traces Of Blood Clots In Urine: What Are The Consequences?

The presence of blood in urine should always be the subject of a medical consultation, as it can be a sign of a serious pathology.

However, the most common causes remain urinary tract infections, which still require rapid treatment to avoid complications. You should know that a very small quantity of blood (1 mL) is enough to color urine intensely. The color is therefore not necessarily a sign of heavy bleeding or high hematuria.

On the other hand, the presence of blood clots should alert you. It is advisable to go to the hospital without delay for an evaluation.

Symptoms Interpretation

Pain may be experienced while passing blood urine, this pain could be felt in the abdominal region, groin, back, or in the penis in men and labia in women. When the clots of blood in the urine are forms of different shapes, this could be bleeding coming from the urethra or prostate in men, whereas clots coming from the ureter could be worm-like in appearance.

Conclusion

It is therefore important you contact your doctor when you notice any traces of small blood in your urine. When there is, however, a sign of clotted blood in your urine, you should contact your doctor as urgently as possible.

About the Author

Nicole Carter is a dedicated and passionate nutritionist, committed to helping individuals achieve their health and wellness goals through the power of proper nutrition. With a Bachelor's degree in Nutritional Science and years of practical experience.

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