Dr Prerna Jhawar
Dr Prerna Jhawar is a Fetal medicine expert with 12+ years of experience. As a Fetal medicine expert, Dr Prerna takes care of babies while they are still in their Mother’s womb! Sharing the More
Reviewed by Dr Prerna Jhawar MBBS, MS(Obstetrics and Gynaecology), FFM Consultant, Fetal Medicine,Rainbow Children's Hospitals, Bengaluru
Dr Prerna Jhawar is a Fetal medicine expert with 12+ years of experience. As a Fetal medicine expert, Dr Prerna takes care of babies while they are still in their Mother’s womb! Sharing the More
Written by Editorial Team
You have missed your period, and you visit a lab to confirm your pregnancy. Your lab or doctor then confirms your pregnancy with a urine test. While urine tests are extremely common for pregnancy confirmation, your gynecologist will continue to prescribe urine tests throughout your pregnancy. Do you know why? These tests check for the presence of sugar, infection, and leukocytes in urine during pregnancy.
Pregnant women tend to have frequent urinary tract infections, and leukocytes in the urine more often suggest an infection. The presence of an increased number of leukocytes in your body strongly suggests infections or obstructions in the urinary tract or bladder. For this reason, urine samples of pregnant women are routinely tested for leukocytes during pregnancy.
Leukocytes are white blood cells (WBC), and they play a vital role in our immune system. They are significant in fighting off infections and ailments. The presence of leukocytes in urine indicates some sort of infection in the urinary tract. The leukocytes in the urine appear when there is an intense infection or obstruction in the urinary tract.
The number of WBC in the urine can be increased due to several reasons, such as:
When you are pregnant, ensure that you are keeping your vagina clean. There shouldn’t be any scope for bacterial development. Despite the care, though, sometimes the vaginal secretions may mix with the urine and pave the way for vaginal infection. This, in turn, can lead to a rise in leukocyte numbers.
Leukocytes can appear in urine if one contracts asymptomatic bacteriuria. It is a condition in which large numbers of bacteria get multiplied in the urinary tract and appear in the urine. Yet, there will be no visible symptoms. However, the presence of leukocytes can be detected with regular urine tests. You will be given antibiotics to treat this condition.
Cystitis refers to an inflammation of the bladder wall. It is estimated that just about half of all women will get it at least once in their life. Pregnancy is one such condition that triggers this issue.
When your urine infections are not treated well, then they might result in impacting the kidney functionality as well. The presence of kidney infections might result in an increase of leukocytes in urine. Vomiting, fever, and pain in the lower back are the symptoms of kidney issues
UTIs are extremely common in women. Pregnant women are even more susceptible to UTIs as the bladder tone gets suppressed due to the pressure of the growing womb. With UTI, the number of leukocytes in your urine increases, indicating the presence of an infection.
Genital infections such as genital herpes, bacterial vaginitis, chlamydia, gonorrhea, vaginal yeast infection, etc., can bring about an increased number of Leukocytes in the urine of pregnant women.
The following are the symptoms with the presence of Leukocytes in the urine. However, these symptoms vary for everyone and entirely depend on the condition of the pregnant woman.
Urine tests are the most common way of checking for leukocytes in urine. When you are healthy, the normal presence of leukocytes in the bloodstream is 4,500-11,000 WBCs per microliter, and it is 0-5 WBCs per HPF (high-power field). If the level of leukocytes is above this level, it indicates the presence of infection.
During your routine pregnancy checks or when you go to your doctor to address a specific problem, your doctor will prescribe a urine test. This test will check for the presence of:
Urine tests, while detecting the presence of infections, can also help the doctor in identifying any possible kidney issues. Additionally, if your sample shows the presence of bacteria, your doctor may ask for a urine culture to help identify the specific bacteria and provide treatment accordingly.
X-rays and CT scans are performed on the urinary tract to find out the reasons for the presence of Leukocytes in the urine. Repeated tests are conducted a detailed analysis.
The doctor starts the treatment protocol depending on the causes, symptoms, and stage of the pregnancy. The doctor may also order repeat tests to check if the treatment is working.
During the first trimester, the urine test is done every three to four weeks. During the second trimester, tests are done every couple of weeks. However, if Leukocytes are diagnosed during the third trimester, the urine test is conducted every week.
After making the right diagnosis, the doctor will suggest antibiotics to protect the baby and the mother. When left untreated, high leukocyte levels can trigger various complications.
Mild infections in the urinary tract can be treated by means of diuretics and natural disinfectants.
Irrespective of the treatment options, for quick relief from the condition, hydration is extremely important. You must drink lots of water along with fluids. Having more fluids helps you to flush the UTI. Urinating frequently might be painful, but it helps you to heal quickly and completely.
Following are some preventive measures you can try to prevent UTIs:
Ensure that you consult the doctor when you face any UTI problems, especially when you are a new mother-to-be. Never neglect this as it might cause serious health issues both for the mother and the baby. Ensure that you approach the right doctor, who will not prescribe unnecessary antibiotics while you are pregnant.
Conclusion
Ensure that you consult the doctor when you face any UTI problems and that too while you are expecting to be a mom. Never neglect this as it might cause serious health issues both for the mother and to the baby. Check out with the right doctor so that you are not going to use unnecessary antibiotics while you are pregnant.
It is true as the diagnosis for Leukemia is made based on the increased count of leukocytes.
Yes, an increase in the WBC in urine is taken as an indication of STD because Gonorrhea and Chlamydia are the types of STDs that are diagnosed by detecting increased WBC in the urine.
The increase in Leukocytes in the blood causes many inflammatory problems. Pregnant women who are facing this issue may experience fatigue, abortion, an increase in pressure. When you find any sort of inflammation while passing urine, seek treatment immediately as it might put your baby at risk.
Yes, it can. Leukocytes are white blood cells. Its presence indicates an infection.
Yes, it can. Cystitis, an inflammation of the bladder can cause this issue.
Yes, it can. Neglecting UTI can cause kidney problems. Other symptoms include vomiting and fever too.
You will pee more frequently. It might even burn when you urinate. A lab test is the most accurate.
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