Urine collection - 24-hour

24 Hour urine collection

In consultation with your doctor it has been decided that your urine needs to be tested. This means that you will have to collect your urine for a period of 24 hours. This leaflet will inform you on the procedure.  

How do you collect your urine?

1. You have been given one or several bottles in a plastic bag by the laboratory staff.
2. Write your patient records on the bottle.
3. Fill in the date and the starting time of your first collection on the form provided.
4. On the day that you begin collecting your urine, you should empty your bladder as soon as you get up. This urine can simply be flushed away.
5. From then on, you must collect all urine you pass over a 24-hour period.
6. The next morning (24 hours after the starting time of the collection) you will pass urine for the      last time. This urine should also be collected in the bottle. Write down the date and stop time      on the form provided.
7. If the bottle is full, use the second bottle of that day. This bottle should also contain your patient records.

If you have to collect urine over a 48-hour period or longer, you should repeat step 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 of the procedure described above.

It is possible that you have to collect urine for several examinations. Make sure that the colour of the label on the second bottle corresponds with that of the first bottle.  

It is important that no urine is lost during the collection period - not even if you have to pass faeces. Take care that no traces of the faeces are mixed with the urine. If not all the urine passed in a 24-hour period is collected, this may lead to incorrect results.  

Attention!
Depending on the type of test, the bottles may contain a preserving agent or a strong acid. Screw the tops tightly on the bottles after you have urinated into it. Mix the contents by gently shaking the bottle. 

Do not leave the bottles within reach of small children!  

Keeping the urine
Keep the urine in a cool place such as a refrigerator during and after the collection.  

Handing in the urine
On the day that you collected the last urine in the morning, you should bring it to the department Blood laboratory in the Outpatients' Department (Bloed-afname) as soon as possible. This laboratory is on the second floor (north lift hall) of the hospital.
Please return both bottles, even if you only used one of them.
Please bring your application with you.
Do not put them in the plastic bag containing the bottle!
Try to keep the bottles upright as you carry them.

The results
The laboratory will send the results of the tests to your doctor who will discuss the results with you. 

Conclusion
Should you have any further questions after reading this leaflet, please do not hesitate to contact the laboratory.  

Telephone number
Laboratory: 070-312 41 89 (on working days between 8 am and 5 pm)

Edition: April 2012/120