What does dark brown urine indicate? Why does urine turn brown and how dangerous is it?

16.07.2024

Fine urine color ranges from pale to bright yellow, as a result of the presence of a pigment called urochrome, the color also depends on whether the urine is concentrated or liquid.

It may not always be ordinary. Vitamins can change the color of urine to bright green, carrots can turn it orange. Porphyria is a disease that affects the skin and nervous system, it changes the color of urine to the color of wine.

Most changes urine colors is temporary and does not cause serious consequences, develops as a result of the use of certain foods, dyes or medications. Sometimes, however, changes in the color of urine may indicate the presence of an infection or other serious illness. Tell your doctor about changes urine colors, which do not seem to you to be related to food or medications.

Symptoms of changes in urine color

Varies depending on how much liquid you drink. Yellow pigments are dissolved in the liquid, so the more you drink, the lighter your urine becomes. When you drink less, the color of your urine becomes more concentrated; severe dehydration can lead to amber-colored urine.

Sometimes urine may take on a color that is far from normal, such as red, green, blue, dark brown, and white.

Symptoms of urinary infections

Majority color changes are not accompanied by pain and pass without other symptoms. If your urine color changes due to a urinary tract infection, you may experience:

a strong, constant urge to urinate
frequent urination
fever, chills, sweating
abdominal pain
strong odor of urine (normal urine should be odorless or have little or no odor)

When to see a doctor:

if you have visible blood in your urine
if you have a change in the color of your urine that is not related to food, medications, supplements or dyes.
if the color of your urine is dark brown, especially if your stool has become light, and the sclera of your eyes and skin are yellow, which indicates serious problems with your liver. In this case, you urgently need medical help.

Causes of urine color change

Urine consists of excess water and waste products that are filtered from your blood by your kidneys. The yellow color of urine is due to the presence of urochrome, a pigment that is produced during the breakdown of hemoglobin, which carries oxygen in red blood cells.

Discoloration of urine often caused by medications, certain foods, and food colorings. For example, dyes used in small quantities in sweets can be found in the urine of children. In some cases, however, changes in urine color may be caused by health problems.

Conditions that can cause urine color to change:

Red or pink urine

Although this condition may be alarming, the appearance of red urine is not necessarily associated with serious problems. Causes of this condition include:

Blood. The presence of red blood cells is the main reason for the red color of urine. Usually the bleeding is not serious and occurs without associated symptoms. Factors that can cause blood in the urine, medically called hematuria, include urinary tract infections, enlarged prostate gland, kidney or bladder stones, kidney disease, and sometimes kidney or bladder cancer.
Food. Beets, blackberries and rhubarb pie can make your urine red or pink.
Medications. Some herbal laxatives. Prescription drugs may have the same effect, including antipsychotics (chlorpromazine, thioridazine, the anesthetic propofol (Diprivan)
Toxins

Chronic lead and mercury toxicity can cause urine to turn red. This may be the result of high levels of porphyrins, the same pigments that discolor the urine of people who have porphyria.

Orange urine color

Causes that can cause orange urine

food products and supplements. Most often it is vitamin C and carrots, carrot juice. High amounts of carotene, the orange pigment in carrots and other vegetables, also changes the color of your soles and palms.
Medicines that can turn your urine orange: antibiotics (rifampicin), warfarin (coumadin), phenazopyridine (pyridine), some laxatives and chemotherapy drugs.
dehydration. Drinking too little fluid may result in concentrated urine containing urochrome.

Blue and green urine color

food. Asparagus can give urine a greenish tint and a characteristic odor.
medications. Many medications cause blue urine, including amitriptyline, methindole (indocin), Tagamet, the antiemetic drug phenegran, and some multivitamins. Dyes used in some pain medications (urised) can cause blue urine.
diseases. Familial hypercalcemia, a rare inherited disorder that causes high levels of calcium in the blood, is sometimes called "blue syndrome" because children with the condition have blue urine.

Urine is dark brown or tea-colored.

Food Eating large amounts of beans, rhubarb, and aloe can cause dark brown urine.
medicines. Many medications can make urine darker, including the antimalarial drugs chloroquine and primaquine, the antibiotic metronidazole, nitrofurantoin, which are used to treat urinary tract infections, laxatives containing cascara or sena, and metoclopramide.
medical problems. Liver dysfunction, especially hepatitis and cirrhosis, a rare hereditary disease - tyrosinemia, can cause dark brown urine. Also acute glomerulonephritis, a kidney disease in which the ability of the kidney to remove excess fluid and waste is impaired.

Cloudy or dark urine

Urinary tract infections or kidney stones can make your urine dark or cloudy.

Risk factors

Eating foods that can affect the color of urine, such as berries, asparagus, rhubarb, and taking certain medications, changes in urine color will not harm you. Your body’s reaction to these products depends on the amount of food and medications consumed, as well as on the characteristics of your metabolism.

Factors related to medical problems that may accompany changes in urine color:

age. Many men over 50 may have blood in their urine due to prostate cancer.
floor. More than half of women have a recurring urinary tract infection, which causes blood to appear in the urine. In men, the condition is likely to be associated with the presence of bladder stones or kidney stones.
recent infection. Inflammatory changes in the kidney after a bacterial or viral infection (post-infectious glomerulonephritis) is one of the common causes of blood in the urine in children.
family history. A family history of kidney disease increases the likelihood of these problems occurring in relatives. These conditions may cause blood to appear in the urine.
strenuous physical activity. This is one of the leading causes of blood in the urine. Long-distance runners can often experience blood in their urine, as can anyone who does intense physical activity.

Preparing for your treatment

You will probably initially contact your family doctor or general practitioner. However, in some cases, you may want to initially see a doctor who specializes in urinary tract pathology (urologist).

Here is some information to help you prepare for your appointment with the Doctor:

you should be aware of any restrictions. When you go to the doctor, make sure you follow all the restrictions before diagnostic tests.

Here's some information to help you prepare for your appointment, and what to expect from your doctor:

What can you do:

be informed of the necessary restrictions. Before visiting your doctor, learn how to prepare for possible diagnostic tests.
Write down any symptoms, including even those that may seem unrelated to the reason for your visit.
Make a list of key medical information, including any other conditions for which you are being treated and any medications, supplements, or vitamins you are taking.
Make a list of questions you want to ask your doctor. Bring paper and pen with you to write down the necessary information.

There are several basic questions that are commonly asked when urine color changes:

What are the possible causes of my symptoms?
What research do I need? Do these studies require any special preparation?
Are my symptoms temporary?
Will I need treatment?
What treatment methods are there?
Do you have any brochures or other printed material that I could take with me? What websites do you recommend visiting?

You can also ask questions during the consultation if anything is unclear to you.

What will your doctor be interested in?

The doctor will probably ask you questions. Be prepared to answer them to leave more time for the points you want to discuss.

The doctor may ask:

What color is your urine?
Do you have blood in your urine or blood clots?
When did you first notice a change in the color of your urine?
Does this happen constantly or periodically?
Does your Urine have an unusual odor?
Do you have frequent or less frequent urination?
Do you have pain when urinating?
What other symptoms do you have?
How has your appetite changed?
Are you feeling more thirsty than usual?
Have you previously had problems with urination?
Do you have any allergies?
What medications do you take?

Research and diagnostics

In addition to your medical history and physical examination, your doctor may order additional tests, including:

Analysis of urine. A general urine test is the first step in the examination. With this examination, you can find an admixture of red blood cells, an increase in protein levels, which may indicate a violation of the excretion of metabolic products, which can lead to stone formation. Your urine will also be tested for bacteria or infection.
blood analysis. It is prescribed to determine the level of creatinine and blood urea nitrogen - waste products that are in your bloodstream when kidney function is impaired. This study can also detect increased levels of liver enzymes and diabetes mellitus.
other studies. You may have other tests depending on the results of your medical history, physical examination, or urinalysis. The most common reason for continuing further testing is the presence of red blood cells in the urine.

Treatment and medications

If urine color is abnormal, there is no specific treatment; your doctor will prescribe you treatment aimed at eliminating the cause.

Lifestyle and regime

When you are dehydrated, your urine becomes more concentrated and darker in color. If you notice this, you need to increase your fluid intake. Make sure you drink enough fluids every day to keep you healthy.

Prevention

Necessary to prevent changes in urine color caused by vitamin supplements, medications, and foods.

To prevent diseases that can cause changes in urine color, you may need to do the following to reduce your risk.

Urinary tract infections

Measures to prevent urinary tract infections:

drink more fluids
urinate when you feel the urge to urinate and immediately after sexual intercourse.
wiping after urination from front to back.

Kidney stones

Measures to prevent kidney stones:

drink more fluids
Limit your intake of salt, protein, and foods such as spinach and rhubarb.

Kidney and bladder cancer

Measures to prevent kidney and bladder cancer:

quit smoking
avoid exposure to toxic chemicals
drink more fluids
Maintain a normal weight, eat healthy foods, and exercise.

The article is for informational purposes only. For any health problems, do not self-diagnose and consult a doctor!

V.A. Shaderkina - urologist, oncologist, scientific editor

Often patients notice that their urine is dark and start to panic because of this. But darkening of the liquid is not always a sign of pathology. A healthy person secretes a light, yellowish liquid without any unpleasant odors. If your urine has become dark in color, you should consult a doctor who will determine the cause of such changes. Dark urine in the morning is normal because the person did not go to the toilet at night and no other liquid entered the body. Usually the second act of urination is characterized by lighter urine. The color of the discharge is changed by many factors, because blood, mucous and purulent impurities are released in the urine. So, patients have black urine, grayish or burgundy discharge, or brown liquid. If dark-colored urine is accompanied by other signs (pain in the abdomen or lower back, weakness, headache, pain in the side or a fever), then the patient should be examined by a doctor.

Physiological causes of darkening of fluid

If the patient’s urine turns dark, there is no need to panic, because darkened discharge is observed not only with the development of illnesses. Natural causes of dark-colored urine include drinking small amounts of liquid and eating foods that make urine cloudy. Urine changes color after exercise or sex, when the body has received physical stress.

The appearance of dark morning urine is the norm for any person, because after sleep, urine is highly concentrated. The color also changes due to the consumption of a small amount of liquid per day or as a result of increased sweating, which occurs on hot days or during physical exertion. This phenomenon indicates an increased level of urochrome. What foods cause urine to turn dark? Strong tea and coffee, legumes, beets, beef, carrots, rhubarb, blueberries, etc. have a coloring effect.

What are the pathological causes?

Dark-colored urine may be a symptom of damage to the urinary system.

What diseases cause dark urine when urinating? The reasons are divided into 2 groups. The first group includes ailments that change the color of urine, which affect the organs of the urinary system (kidneys, urethra, bladder). Such diseases include pyelonephritis, urolithiasis, cystitis, malignant neoplasms or nephritis. The second group is general disorders of the body's metabolic processes (the appearance of jaundice, hyperlipidemia or hemolysis), which affects urine analysis.

What does the shade indicate?

A distinctive feature is the urinary tint. If the urine acquires a dark brown color, this indicates liver damage or ailments of the gallbladder, as a result of which bilirubin and biliverdin are removed from the kidneys (for example, cholestasis develops), and with urolithiasis, the outflow of bile is complicated. When the liquid has darkened to a dark yellow hue, the patient has a progressive illness affecting the urinary tract. In addition, high levels of salts, urates, etc. are found in the discharge. There may also be gray urine, indicating the presence of purulent discharge.

If the urine turns dark, the cause may be the development of cirrhosis, and dark urine also appears due to hepatitis C or kidney diseases, due to which the process of removing excess waste is disrupted. In addition, with pathology, the patient develops such signs as increased sweating, nausea, increased protein in the urine, vomiting and pain, the patient has a fluid with an odor and the temperature rises. It is important that when changes are detected, the exact factor due to which the urine darkens is established. In particular, this applies to cases when a person is worried about fever and sharp pain in the lower abdomen, and pain in the left side or right side, headaches and weakness, and diarrhea may appear.

Causes of dark discharge in men

In men, the cause of brown urine may be inflammatory processes in the genitourinary system.

Discharge in an adult man can change color due to ailments of the vas deferens, prostate, testicles and other genital organs. This is due to the fact that urine, seminal discharge, and prostate secretions pass through the urethra. The appearance of a rusty tint means that blood has stagnated in the prostate gland, which manifests itself in a man with prostatitis. If a brick color is detected, a scrotal injury or the presence of inflammatory processes in the epididymis can be detected.

What causes dark discharge in women?

Dark-colored urine in women may be a sign of inflammatory processes appearing in the patient’s body. These include malignant neoplasms in the pancreas and liver, kidney diseases, various types of injuries, the development of vasculitis, jaundice or hepatitis, hemolytic anemia, and also the symptom manifests itself in pancreatitis. If the patient's urine appears dark in color, then an infection may have entered the urinary canals or the patient may have high levels of bilirubin.

Dark urine in women appears when following a certain dietary menu or when using products that have a coloring effect (tea or coffee drink, beets, etc.). Darkening of urine may be a symptom of pregnancy, which appears due to hormonal changes in the patient, or appears after childbirth. Dirty and smelly fluid is released during sexually transmitted diseases, cervical cancer and disintegrating uterine fibroids.

Symptoms of dark urine

The discharge of very dark, almost black, urine is observed in acute renal failure.

A healthy person secretes a light yellow liquid that has no odors or impurities. But there are different causes of dark urine, and the type of disease that develops depends on the shade. Changes in the color of urine are sometimes associated with a person’s age, because after 50 years, damage to the genitourinary system occurs in both men and women. Moreover, each syndrome is characterized by urine of a certain color.

If the color of the urine has changed to dark yellow, while the liquid is cloudy and of high concentration, then the patient has experienced dehydration, resulting in nausea, vomiting and loose, light-colored stools.
Brown discharge indicates hemolytic anemia.
Black urine is a sign of melanosarcoma, alkaptonuria, and acute hemolytic kidney is also diagnosed.
Red, almost burgundy thick urine with blood indicates tumors, cystitis and urolithiasis.
Glomerulonephritis is the reason why the color of meat slop appears.
A greenish-brown tint (beer-colored urine) means that the patient is developing parenchymal jaundice.
If there is a gray tint, which is almost white and discolored, it is said that there is fat or purulent discharge in the discharge, and the urine smells unpleasant.

Why is dark yellow urine considered a sign of pathology? Normally, it should be straw or amber in color, which is due to the release of the urochrome pigment. Any deviations in the color and clarity of urine indicate the presence of one or another painful condition. Sometimes dark yellow urine is caused by physiological reasons: the use of medications or certain foods.

Physiological reasons for the appearance of dark urine

Urochrome is a water-soluble chemical, so drinking large amounts of liquid will make your urine lighter. In the morning, the concentration of this pigment increases, so the urine becomes dark yellow. Accordingly, a similar phenomenon can be observed in hot weather, with intense sweating or slight dehydration.

Natural dyes included in some products can give urine a dark yellow or orange tint.

These include beans, carrots, beef, carbonated drinks and black tea.

Urine also becomes darker when taking medications used to treat infectious diseases, vitamin C, and laxatives. Replacement or discontinuation of the drug in such cases is not required; the symptom disappears after completion of the course of treatment.

Diseases that cause dark urine

Dark yellow urine has a variety of causes. These are mainly diseases of the kidneys, liver and gall bladder. Urine in women darkens in the presence of inflammatory processes in the genital organs, in men - prostatitis. You should consult a doctor if the following signs appear:

pain when urinating;
feeling of heaviness: in men – in the testicle area, in women – in the lower abdomen;
frequent urination;
increased sweating;
temperature increase;
unpleasant smell of urine.

Yellow urine often indicates the first signs of a serious illness that go unnoticed by a person.

It is extremely important to detect this symptom in time if we are talking about a child who is unable to describe his condition.

Identification will help the doctor choose the right therapy. sometimes indicates the presence of liver disease, in which case bilirubin, a breakdown product of red blood cells, gives it its color.

When a person is healthy, bilirubin is taken up by liver cells and excreted through the intestines along with bile. Dysfunction of these organs leads to a failure of the urine disposal mechanism, and this substance begins to accumulate in the kidneys.

The disease is accompanied by yellowing of the skin and itching. Associated signs are: changes in the consistency and shade of stool, the appearance of heaviness in the right side. The excretion of bilirubin is also disrupted in the presence of gallstones. The skin also acquires a characteristic color, painful sensations are observed in the area of the right hypochondrium or epigastrium, the stomach rumbles, and the temperature rises. A characteristic sign of liver dysfunction is foam in the urine.

The brown color of urine in the presence of hemolytic jaundice is not due to blockage of the bile ducts. This symptom indicates the accumulation of oxyhemoglobin in the kidneys, which is formed during the massive destruction of red blood cells. The pigment enters the bladder in an unbound state, so the color of urine changes from dark yellow to black. The rapid breakdown of red blood cells can be caused by: food poisoning, extensive burns, snake and insect bites, acute infectious diseases, severe frostbite, transfusion of incompatible blood.

With hemolytic anemia, a hereditary disease characterized by the rapid breakdown of red blood cells, the stool does not change its color and there is no itching of the skin.

The skin and sclera become lemon yellow. There may be an increase in temperature and the appearance of signs associated with digestive disorders.

Other causes of dark urine include diseases of the excretory system. With nephritis or glomerulonephritis, the urine thickens and foreign inclusions are found in it. The appearance of bleeding in the bladder and ureters causes the fluid to turn brown.

Hematuria is accompanied by pain in the lower abdomen, a regular urge to urinate, and an increase in temperature. A characteristic sign of kidney disease is swelling of the face and lower extremities. A change in the color of urine in men is accompanied by prostatitis, orchitis, epididymitis or. Blood and pus released during inflammatory processes give urine an orange or brown color.

In women, darkening is facilitated by the presence of large fibroids, collapsing tumors of the cervix, and inflammatory processes in the vagina. Urine changes color if sexually transmitted infections are present. But during pregnancy, yellow urine does not always indicate the presence of pathology. This may be one of the symptoms of toxicosis in the early stages. Frequent bouts of vomiting dehydrate the body, so a woman should consume at least 2 liters of clean water per day. If you follow a special drinking regime and your urine does not clear up, you must notify your doctor.

The cause of this symptom may be a dysfunction of the kidneys or gallbladder. Darkening of urine may be associated with taking vitamin supplements or eating certain foods.

Why does urine darken in children?

The appearance of this symptom in infants may indicate dehydration, for example, after prolonged exposure to a stuffy room. can be observed in case of poisoning of the body and acute infections. In children, these diseases are characterized by an aggressive course, so when the first signs appear, you should consult a doctor. Tyrosinemia is a rare genetic disease associated with increased levels of tyrosine in the blood. It is this substance that gives urine its specific color.

In newborns, this symptom may be caused by physiological jaundice associated with liver immaturity. Signs of the disease disappear on the 7th–10th day of the baby’s life. Another cause of this disease is Rh conflict, which requires serious treatment.

If the urine darkens, this is not a separate disease, but only a signal that there are disturbances in the functioning of the body.

Having determined the cause of this symptom, the doctor will explain to the patient how to deal with it.

For physiological causes of dark urine, specific therapy is not carried out. Its color returns to normal as soon as dyes stop entering the body. If you are dehydrated, you should drink as much fluid as possible. Liver diseases require the use of hepatoprotectors and digestive enzymes. If necessary, infusion therapy is prescribed to help cleanse the blood. If the genitourinary system is infected, antibacterial drugs are prescribed.

The study of urine includes quantitative and qualitative indicators. The color of urine is determined by comparison with a standard scale; it is necessarily included in the analysis report.

Modern diagnostic methods are not comparable to the working conditions of zemstvo doctors of the 19th century, when the color of urine was used to judge a person’s health, and they knew in which cases the color of foam or urinary sediment remained. People may notice a change in urine color on their own. This important sign causes caution, doubt, and the need to consult a doctor.

What determines the color of urine?

A study of the biochemical composition that affects the color of urine normally showed that the following are important:

transparency;
coloring;
intensity.

To characterize what color a particular person’s urine should be, you need to take into account the characteristics of his diet and medication intake. The color saturation varies depending on the total amount of urine excreted and its specific gravity (concentration of dissolved substances).

The chemical composition of urine is a multicomponent liquid. More than 150 substances are dissolved in it. In fresh urine of a healthy adult, color is produced by pigments:

urochrome;
uroerythrin;
urosein;
stercobilin.

All of them contribute to the coloring of urine in different shades of yellow, from light to richly bright. The intensity increases with oliguria, increased specific gravity of dissolved substances (salts, urea and uric acid, mucopolysaccharides).

The presence of a large amount of mucus and salts reduces transparency, the color looks dull. The normal color of urine is usually determined by the morning portion. Therefore, one of the requirements for collecting an analysis is to deliver the container to the laboratory no later than two hours. If a jar of urine is stored longer, the processes of fermentation and decomposition of the contents begin. This results in changes in color and transparency.

What factors determine the color of urine?

The reasons for changes in the color of urine are associated with:

level of metabolism in the body - increased activity in thyrotoxicosis;
volume of urine excreted - the greater the diuresis, the lighter the color, as the dilution of pigmenting substances increases;
by the age of the person - in children, the urine is light yellow, in the infant period it is almost colorless, a slight reddish tint is associated with an increase in the level of uric acid;
consumption of products, preservatives containing vegetable and artificial dyes (carrots, beets, eosin, methylene blue);
feverish state due to infectious diseases;
taking medications;
urinary tract injuries;
inflammation in the genitourinary area;
diseases of the liver, gall bladder and duct;
blood diseases;
hereditary metabolic abnormality.

We will look at what the color of urine depends on and how it changes in shades.

What to think about if an adult’s urine is colorless?

Urine has a characteristic milky white color due to chyluria and lymph ingestion. This pathology is formed due to a connection (fistula tract) between the lymph duct and the renal pelvis or bladder.

Typically the formation of three immiscible layers:

white clot on top;
in the middle there is a milky liquid;
at the bottom there are epithelial cells, salts, and fatty inclusions.

A similar condition is possible with pyonephrosis (kidney abscess).

The difference is the absence of massive leukocyturia and bacteriuria, symptoms of an acute destructive process in the kidneys. Self-cessation occurs when the patient is in a horizontal position; when he rises, lymph instantly fills the urinary system, and the color of the urine changes to whitish.

Prolonged discharge of pale, almost colorless urine is characteristic of diabetes insipidus and diabetes mellitus, chronic renal failure.

Green urine is caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa

What does orange urine indicate?

Orange or red colored urine means:

release from the blood of a significant amount of pigments such as urochrome and urobilinogen;
ingestion of preservatives containing dyes, carrot juice and dishes made from carrots and oranges;
dehydration, low fluid intake, excessive uncompensated sweating in the heat, in a sauna, during physical work;
treatment with Chloroquine, Riboflavin, Furagin, Furadonin, Rifampicin changes the color of urine from a bright yellow tint to intense orange.

With an increased content of bilirubin in the blood, the urine has a saffron-yellow or amber color, and after shaking the container, the foam also becomes colored.

When does urine turn pink?

A pink tint to light yellow urine appears when eaten:

dishes made from beets and large quantities of carrots;
red food coloring found in canned meat, lemonade, and candy;
blackberries and cherries;
black currant for acidic urine;
rhubarb for alkalizing urine.

Pink color is possible when treated with drugs:

containing acetylsalicylic acid (Aspirin, many headache tablets);
Ibuprofen;
Phenolphthalein group;
Aminophenazone;
Phenilin;
Rifampicin.

Urine of any pink-reddish hue indicates the presence of:

red blood cells;
hemoglobin breakdown products;
bilirubin and its derivatives.

Hematuria (admixture of fresh blood and free hemoglobin) is possible in pathological conditions:

cystitis;
glomerulonephritis;
pyelonephritis;
urolithiasis;
tumors of the urinary organs;
systemic vasculitis involving the glomerular apparatus of the kidneys.

In these cases, in addition to the changed color of urine, patients experience other symptoms:

pain in the lumbar region, above the pubis, in the groin; for men with renal colic, irradiation into the penis and scrotum is typical;
temperature increase;
dysuric disorders (frequent urge to urinate, cramps);
swelling on the face in the morning, in the evening on the legs and feet;
high blood pressure;
unpleasant smell of urine.

In men over 60 years of age, hematuria is often a sign of prostate adenoma or bladder cancer.

A urine test reveals:

red blood cells (fresh or leached);
leukocytes;
bacteria;
slime;
salt;
protein;
cylinders;
epithelial cells.

Without a microscope, clots of mucus, pus, and fibrin threads are visible.

When does urine turn red?

Such a sign as the intensely red (burgundy) color of urine indicates massive bleeding in the urinary tract. This may be caused by:

injury to the mucous membrane by a stone during its movement;
destructive effect of the tumor;
injury to the kidneys, lower urinary tract, genital organs;
diseases with reduced blood clotting rates (hemophilia);
hemoglobinuria.

In urolithiasis, the most common cause of bleeding is oxalate stones. They are distinguished by sharp edges and a significant wounding surface. Reddening of urine after an attack of renal colic is typical.

Blood in the urine forms clots, which, depending on their size, can clog the ureter and cause signs of acute retention.

When muscle tissue breaks down during severe injuries, long-term compression syndrome, myoglobin appears in the blood and urine. Its presence gives urine a red-brown color.

Viral hepatitis is accompanied by changes in the color of urine at different stages

If your urine is dark brown, what does this mean?

Most often, the dark color of urine in a child is caused by a lack of fluid in the drinking regime. Children are much more sensitive to dehydration than adults. Therefore, pediatricians always remind people of the need to give extra water between feedings and not to skimp on diapers.

In adults, in addition to dehydration, urine darkens from:

frequent intake of laxative teas containing buckthorn bark and cassia;
therapy with Metronidazole, Rifampicin, drugs of the nitrofuran group, Quinine, Imipenem;
use in treatment of B vitamins, large dosages of C, sulfur-containing drugs, antibiotics;
disorders of bilirubin metabolism due to hepatitis, cholelithiasis, tumors of the liver and pancreas (at the same time, the stool becomes light);
alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver;
viral hepatitis;
toxic effect on the liver due to mercury poisoning;
increased breakdown of red blood cells in blood diseases;
hemochromatosis and iron excess;
hereditary tyrosinemia - a serious disease associated with a lack of enzymes involved in the breakdown of the protein tyrosine, which destroys kidney and liver cells;
infectious inflammation of the urinary organs;
malignant lesions of the kidneys, bladder, polycystic disease;
consequences of kidney damage in systemic vasculitis.

Hematuria, caused by hemoglobin from erythrocytes entering the urine, under the influence of acidity is accompanied by conversion to hematin or methemoglobin. Therefore, the color turns from pink to brown.

Injuries to the liver tissue may be accompanied by blackening of the urine. Black urine is also part of the symptoms of such serious diseases as:

Marchiafava-Miceli disease (a rare form of hemolytic anemia);
alkaptonuria is a hereditary chromosomal pathology, more often detected in men;
melanoma is a malignant tumor.

Urine with alkaptonuria turns black when exposed to air

In pregnant women, as a rule, the urine is quite dark in the morning, and in the daytime it becomes straw-yellow. The changes are related to the daily hormonal balance.

When do blue-green shades of urine occur?

Blue or, more precisely, blue-tinged urine occurs in rare cases. Medicines have the ability to:

Phenacetin – color urine brown-green (tea) or dark;
Amitriptyline and methyl blue - green or blue-green;
Tetracycline antibiotics have a similar effect on patients with diabetes;
An individual reaction to taking certain vitamins is possible.

A congenital disorder of protein metabolism is associated with the accumulation of the protein tryptophan. It is found in fish, seafood, chicken, and turkey. In patients with impaired absorption, the urine acquires a blue tint.

When, besides urine, does sediment become colored?

Usually urine sediment is fawn in color, but different reasons cause it to become colored:

if a large amount of uric acid precipitates, the sediment looks like yellow sand;
with a large amount of urate it becomes brick-red in color;
the presence of tripelphosphate salts, as well as amorphous phosphates, makes the sediment dense and white;
admixture of pus – gives a green tint;
inclusions of erythrocytes - red.

What should you do if you notice an unusual color in your urine?

If you detect changes against the background of good health, you should think about the amount of fluid you drink and your eating habits. Observe the urine for 1-2 days. A persistent discoloration may signal the onset of a chronic disease. It should be remembered that many diseases have a latent period.

Changes in urine color are difficult to assess on your own. It's best to get tested. Laboratory methods make it possible to find out which substances affect coloring in each individual case. To find out what the color of urine indicates, the doctor will first try to establish a connection with physiological reasons. Only when a pathology is identified is treatment prescribed.

It is impossible to draw a conclusion about a person’s health based on the color of urine alone. For an accurate diagnosis, additional examination methods will be required.

Urine is diagnosed based on qualitative and quantitative readings of the substances it contains, and the color is compared with a reference scale.

The color is indicated in writing in the diagnosis.

Unlike the 19th century, current diagnostic methods have made great strides forward; they do not judge the patient’s health level by the color of their urine; a person himself is able to determine the fluctuation in the color of his urine.Change in urine colorshould alert the patient and encourage him to consult a doctor for advice.

What is the normal color of urine?

Normal urine colordetermined by the state of transparency, color and saturation. To determine,what color should a healthy person's urine be?It is imperative to take into account his diet, what medications he takes and in what quantities. The intensity of the color of urine is determined by the concentration of substances dissolved in it per total volume of urine.

The color will be less intense if a person drinks the liquid in the absence of kidney pathologies or other serious diseases that disrupt metabolic processes in the body.

The standard composition of urine includes about 150 components.What does urine color mean?healthy person? – about the presence of pigments: the presence of urochrome, uroerythrin, urozein, stercobilin. These pigments color urine in different shades of yellow. The color saturation is enhanced by components: mucopolysaccharides. If the content of mucus and salt in urine is increased, the transparency decreases and the color becomes duller.

The color of urine is usually determined from a sample taken in the morning on an empty stomach. It is necessary to take the test within two hours after urination, in extreme cases, no later than four hours. After two hours, the components in the urine begin to ferment, causing its color and degree of transparency to change.

Causes of urine color change

Causes of urine color changelies in some processes of the body:

increased intensity in thyrotoxicosis (chronic increase in thyroid hormones in the human body);
the amount of urine produced and the frequency of urination;
age - baby urine coloralmost transparent, in children - a light shade;
preservatives and dyes contained in food, including vegetable origin;
taking medications;
injuries of the urinary system;
liver pathologies, dysfunction of the gallbladder or bile duct;
blood diseases;
hereditary disorder of the body's metabolic processes.

If urine color has changedtowards a milky white hue, then this is a sign of the disease chyluria. The cause of an incorrect connection between the lymph duct and the bladder can be:

With pyonephrosis (the presence of an abscess in the kidney), there is a change in shade towards three layers: a white thick substance at the top, milky white in the middle, at the bottom there are salts, fats in sediment.

If urine remains white for a long time, then this is a sign of diabetes, both diabetes mellitus and non-diabetes diabetes, as well as chronic renal failure.

Pink and red urine, which means

Red urine is an indicator of several facts:

excess levels of a pigment such as urochrome or urobilinogen,
consumption of preservatives, dyes, for example, products from fresh carrots or oranges,
lack of fluid in the body, especially with profuse sweating, for example, during physical labor, in a bath or in the heat,
taking medications: Chloroquine, Riboflavin, Furagshina.

Pink and red urine

A pink tint to urine is caused by eating beets, or too many carrots, as well as red dyes, meat preservatives, lemonade, candies, and vegetable candies: blackberries and cherries, black currants, rhubarb. Under the influence of medications, the pink tint of urine is caused by taking Aspirin, Ibuprofen, and painkillers.

A pink-reddish tint indicates an excess of red blood cells, hemoglobin breakdown, and bilirubin component in urine, i.e. about the beginning of the development of hematuria. Hematuria develops with cystitis, the presence of stones in the kidneys, tumors of the urinary system, pyelonephritis, systemic vasculitis. With such a dangerous shade of urine, accompanying symptoms usually appear:

pain in the lumbar area,
elevated temperature,
pain when urinating and frequent urination,
swelling,
high blood pressure,
unusual smell of urine.

In representatives of the stronger sex over sixty, the root cause of hematuria is usually prostate adenoma, tumor formations in the bladder. When analyzing urine, substances are detected: red blood cells, mucus, bacteria, protein, epithelium, leukocytes, salt. Mucus or pus is visible even without a microscope; fibrin threads may be present, also during visual inspection.

Red urine with a burgundy tint is a sign of heavy bleeding in the urinary tract. This may be a consequence of damage to the mucosa during the movement of a stone, movement of a tumor, injury to the kidneys or genital organs, hemophilia. If there are stones in the kidneys, bleeding is often caused by oxolate stones, because they usually have sharp edges. Also, the urine turns red when exposed to renal colic. Blood in the urine is a dangerous sign because... blood clogs the ureter and can cause severe retention, which is harmful.

Brown-colored urine often indicates that the body often lacks fluid; a person simply needs to drink more fluids per day. Dehydration is much more dangerous for children. In adults, urine may darken as a result of taking laxatives, nitrofurans, an excess of vitamins B and C in the diet, and antibiotics. A brown tint of urine also appears with alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver, with viral hepatitis, tumors of the liver, pancreas, with hemochromatosis, with infections of the urinary system, and kidney pathology.

When hematuria occurs due to the entry of red blood cells into the urine, it takes on a brown tint due to the conversion of red blood cells into hematin under the influence of uric acid.

Black urine indicates a violation of the liver, or rather its tissues. Liver tissue is usually damaged due to:

types of hemolytic anemia,
chromosome pathology, which is more common in males,
malignant tumors.

With chromosomal pathology, urine turns black when exposed to air.

During pregnancy, the urine darkens in the morning, and during the day it has a calm yellow tint. Fluctuations in the color of urine during pregnancy are associated with hormone fluctuations.

Greenish shades of urine appear less frequently than others; they appear due to the consumption of Phenacetin, which colors urine a tea-colored shade, and Amitriptyline, which colors it blue-green. Or the body’s individual reaction to certain vitamins of artificial origin. In people with congenital metabolic dysfunction, the urine is usually bluish in color.

In addition to the liquid component of urine, urine sediment can also be stained.

A fawn-colored sediment indicates:

an excess of uric acid, the sediment gives off a yellowish tint,
excess of urates, brick-colored sediment,
purulent impurities, in which the sediment is green in color,
erythrocytes, which stain the sediment red.

Atypical shade of urine

If an atypical shade of urine is detected in a visually healthy state of the body, you need to pay attention to the daily fluid intake and diet.

In this case, you should observe a change in the color of the urine within a couple of days. Periodic changes in the shade of urine may indicate the presence of some chronic disease that is hidden.

A change in the color of urine is difficult to notice visually, unless the shade becomes completely atypical, so it is better to submit your urine for laboratory analysis.

Microscopic examination allows us to determine the cause of urine staining and prescribe the correct treatment.

A final diagnosis of a person’s health cannot be made based solely on the results of a urine test; additional diagnostics are required.