Bag urine
This test is used for babies and children who are not yet toilet trained. It is less reliable than an MSU (see opposite), but is useful to exclude the presence of a urinary tract infection.
Procedure
If you are at a clinic, the staff will help you with this procedure. Clean your child’s genital area with warm water and pat dry with a clean towel. Apply the adhesive plastic bag provided by your doctor or nurse. You should ideally try to give the child a lot to drink before applying the bag, because if it is left on for more than 15-20 minutes, contamination can occur. Be very careful when removing the bag and transferring the urine to a sterile jar, because contamination with non-sterile surfaces can easily occur. If you are at a clinic, the staff will do this for you.
This test can be performed on ordinary specimens of urine. It is a general test which indicates whether the urine contains protein, blood, sugar or other substances which should not be present in normal circumstances. The sticks are a commercially available kit and are simple to use. Your doctor will always have some dipsticks in the surgery to do on-the-spot tests if needed.
Micturating cystourethrogram (MCU)
This is a special X-ray, in which dye is injected into the bladder via a catheter, and shows the bladder and urinary system both before and during the process of your child emptying his bladder. It can be used to detect cases of vesico-ureteric reflux.
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