Patient education: Urine albumin test (The Basics)

What is a urine albumin test? — This is a test to check the urine for albumin. Albumin is a protein made in the liver.

Normally, the kidneys filter blood and remove waste and excess salt and water. When the kidneys are healthy, albumin passes through the kidneys and stays in the blood. If the kidneys are not working the way they should, some albumin can get into the urine. The medical term for this is "albuminuria."

For this test, you need to give a urine sample. Sometimes, other tests are done on the sample at the same time.

Why might I get a urine albumin test? — Your doctor might order this test to:

●Check for kidney disease or injury

●Monitor you if you have known kidney disease

How do I collect my urine? — You might collect a urine sample in the doctor's office or clinic, or at home. Your doctor or nurse will tell you how to do this.

There are 2 ways it can be done:

●Spot urine collection – This often means getting a urine sample first thing in the morning. To collect the sample:

•Wash your hands with soap and water.

•Clean your genital area by wiping gently from front to back. Your doctor or nurse might give you a special wipe to use for this.

•Let a little bit of urine out into the toilet, then stop mid-stream.

•Hold the cup so it is ready to catch your urine.

•Start urinating again, and catch the urine in the cup. Fill the cup with as much urine as your doctor or nurse told you to collect. Do not let the cup touch your body or the toilet.

•Finish urinating in the toilet.

●24-hour urine collection – This means collecting all of the urine that your body produces over a 24-hour period:

•Urinate as soon as you wake up on the first morning. Do not collect this urine. You can flush it down the toilet like usual. Write down the exact time this happens. This is the start of your 24-hour collection period.

•Collect the rest of your urine for the next 24 hours. During this time, it is important to collect all of your urine, even if it is a very small amount.

•Use the bottle your doctor or nurse gave you to collect your urine. Store the bottle in the refrigerator until you bring it to your doctor.

What do my results mean? — Your doctor or nurse will tell you when to expect your results, and will contact you with the results. Or if you use an online "patient portal," you might get an alert there when your results are ready.

If your urine albumin test, or any related tests, show any abnormal results, your doctor or nurse will talk to you about what to do next. They might need to do more tests to figure out what the cause is.

If you do have a health problem, your doctor will work with you to come up with a plan for treatment.

More on this topic

Patient education: 24-hour urine collection (The Basics)
Patient education: Urinalysis (The Basics)
Patient education: Chronic kidney disease (The Basics)
Patient education: Kidney disease caused by diabetes (The Basics)

Patient education: Collection of a 24-hour urine specimen (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Chronic kidney disease (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Diabetic kidney disease (Beyond the Basics)