What it means if there’s blood in your urine

Unless you are having your periods, seeing blood in urine can be frightening. Whether you are male or female, blood in urine is something you shouldn’t just ignore.

Also known as hematuria, studies show that 2-30% of adults will experience it.

It’s usually a symptom of an underlying condition that needs to be treated. Since delayed diagnosis can be a serious problem, you should see a doctor to rule out any medical conditions.

So, what does it mean when there is blood in your urine? Well, there are several reasons as to why you may notice some blood in the urine. We have listed a few of them below:

1. Urinary tract infections (UTI)

Although UTIs are more common among women, men also get UTIs. UTIs usually affect the lower tract and women are more prone to them given the position of the vagina is close to the anus. Their urethra is also short which makes it easier for bacteria to move into the urinary tract. Apart from seeing blood in the urine, someone with a UTI may also experience; burning sensation when urinating, frequent urge to urinate, abdominal pains, and cloudy looking urine.

2. Kidney stones

This is considered as one of the most painful medical conditions. Although they originate from the kidneys, they can develop in other areas and move to other areas such as the ureter. They block the flow of urine causing a lot of pain around the groin area. Kidney stones symptoms include; blood in urine, frequent urge to urinate, small amounts of urine, foul-smelling urine, nausea, vomiting, fever, and chills.

3. Enlarged prostate

When the prostate gland is enlarged, it presses the urethra making it difficult to urinate. To compensate on that, the bladder works harder to release urine which causes damage and bleeding. In worse cases, a person may completely be unable to pass urine and may need surgery. Other signs and symptoms of an enlarged prostate include; urgent need to urinate, difficulty passing urine, feeling the bladder is full even after urination and frequent visits to the bathroom.

4. Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is one of the common types of cancer affecting men in Kenya. Despite it being so common, studies show that most men don’t go for testing and only show up in hospital when the symptoms have aggravated. Some of the common signs of prostate cancer to watch out for include; blood in urine and seminal fluid, erectile dysfunction, frequent urination and the urge to urinate frequently at night.

5. Bladder cancer

Bladder cancer can be detected early because the blood in urine is usually one of the early signs to watch out for. Besides hematuria, bladder cancer comes with other symptoms like waking up at night many times to urinate, a weak urine stream, urinating more often than usual and pain when passing urine.