This article will tell you what the normal level of uric acid is necessary for your body. High uric acid levels may lead to gout and kidney stones in your body. This post will inform you about when you need a uric acid test, its procedure, and how you will prepare for the test. Maintaining the recommended level of uric acid in the body is essential for your health. Read the article throughout to get more information about uric acid.

What is Uric Acid?

Uric acid is a waste material produced when your body breaks down a chemical substance known as purines. Purine may release into your bloodstream when the death of body cells happens. You get purines from foods, such as dried beans, liver, seafood, and shellfish. Your kidney has to filter most of the uric acid from the blood. Generally, high uric acid levels are released from the body into urine while the remaining comes during stool. The uric acid level is maintained in a healthy body.

Uric Acid Test

A uric acid test helps to see uric acid levels in your blood if you are a person who is taking cancer treatment by chemotherapy or radiation method. The radiation from chemotherapy or other helps to destroy cancer cells and results in the development of purine in your blood in higher concentration. In this way, your blood uric acid level increases, which create health problems, specifically for the kidney or your joints. It is important to maintain recommended level of uric acid to eliminate certain health problems.

Need for A Uric Acid Test

High uric acid levels in your blood lead to the deposition of needle-like crystals in your joint fluid, also known as gout. A gout is a form of inflammatory arthritis that develops joint swelling with pain.

Your healthcare provider recommends a uric acid test if you experience gout and kidney stones. Following are the symptoms of gout and kidney stone:

Symptoms of Gout

Gout can lead to severe pain, redness, and swelling in your joints. These include your toes, ankle, wrists, knee, feet, and specifically, your big toe (the forend of a foot).

Symptoms of Kidney Stone

Your provider may also ask to schedule an online order for a uric acid test when you have signs and symptoms of kidney stone that include:

• The urine comes with blood.
• Pain in your body parts, such as the lower abdomen, side, back, and groin (a portion of your hip between your abdominal and thigh).
• Burn or pain while urinating.
• Nausea and vomiting
• Smell or cloud in the urine
• Increased urge to urinate
• Fever
• Chills
• Difficulty urinating at all.

Method of Uric Acid Test

A uric acid test may be performed through blood or a urine sample. In this section, both sample procedures will discuss:

Blood sample: You should place an online order for a uric acid test before going to the laboratory. A provider will ask to remove your part of the cloth from one hand. A small needle will insert into a vein in your arm to collect your blood sample into a test tube or a sample container. You may experience discomfort or pain in your vein area during the needle injection, but this does not stay long. The whole blood collection procedure takes only five minutes.

Urine sample:  A healthcare provider may also suggest urine samples for the uric acid test to people. A 24-hour urine and a random urine test are the two ways to collect urine samples.

For a 24-hour urine test, your provider will ask you to collect all your urine for 24 hours. A container will provide to collect your urine with proper instructions. Your provider will inform you when to collect your urine. This test usually has the listed steps:

• First, you will urinate in the toilet on the first day of the morning. Flush this urine. Note the time when you urinate.
• Collect urine in the sample container for the next 24 hours.
• You will need to store your urine sample in a refrigerator or a cool place.
• Try to urinate in the container if you feel it after the 24-hour test period, which is the final test collection.

For a random urine test, you can collect your urine into a sample container at any time as per the requirement of your provider.

How do I get ready for Uric Acid?

You can eat or drink before the test if you only have a uric acid test. When your provider will ask for more blood tests, fasting may be required for these tests. If you are going for a uric acid blood test, you can inform your provider about the medicines, vitamins, and supplements you use. It is important to consult a provider to receive guidance about when to stop medications for the test.

Risk factors of Uric acid test

The uric acid test will not show high risks in your body. Some bleeding, infection and bruising may happen during the collection of blood samples from the vein.

The Normal level of Uric Acid

The measurement unit of uric acid is milligrams per deciliter. The normal level of uric acid lies between 3.5 to 7.2 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). The high compared to a normal level of uric acid considered for males and females is above 6 mg/dL and 7 mg/dL, respectively.

The recommended level of uric acid may vary on various factors, including sex, age, medical history, family history, and other health conditions. The normal level of uric acid may also change slightly among laboratories because each lab can use different references for measurements. A provider will guide you about your test result for uric acid. The easiest way to talk with a provider is e-consultation while you are sitting at home.

Causes of High Uric Acid in the Blood

If your test results show high level of uric acid in your blood, the following are the reasons for it:

1. Your body is producing a high uric acid amount in the blood.
2. Your kidney fails to excrete recommended uric acid from your blood.
3. You are taking high purines in the form of foods, such as organ meat, seafood, liver, high fructose syrup, and kidney.
4. Metabolic syndrome
5. Intake of drugs that suppress your immune system
6. Leukemia
7. Being overweight
8. Niacin (Vitamin B-3)
9. Excess use of alcohol
10. Tumor lysis syndrome – A condition of cells that comes rapidly into the blood developed by certain cancers
11. High blood pressure
12. Use of diuretics

Uric Acid Test Cost

The uric acid test cost may range from $18 to $31. The price also depends on the insurance type. Take a uric acid test here at a discounted price.

Conclusion:

If you see mentioned symptoms of gout and kidney stones, you should take immediate action. The level of uric acid in the body may be judged by conducting a uric acid test here at a low price.