[Clinical importance of microhematuria as an initial sign of bladder tumor]

To investigate the role of microhematuria for the diagnosis of bladder tumor, the retrospective study of 156 patients with bladder tumor was done. Among the 156 cases, asymptomatic microhematuria was observed in 15 cases (9.6%) as an initial sign of the disease. According to the process to the final diagnosis, these 15 cases were classified into 4 groups; the Group 1 comprised 4 patients who consulted the urologist just after health examination; the Group 2 comprised 6 patients who consulted the urologist by the introduction of the general practitioner; the Group 3 comprised 2 patients who disregarded the sign and consulted the urologist after the appearance of symptoms; the Group 4 comprised 3 patients whose general practitioner overlooked the sign and who consulted the urologist after the appearance of the symptoms. The mean duration between the initial sign and the final diagnosis of each group was 2, 2, 8 and 62 months, respectively. Three of the 5 patients (60%) in groups 3 and 4 were treated by total cystectomy, while only 2 of the 10 patients (20%) in groups 1 and 2 totally cystectomized. High grade tumor was observed more frequently in groups 3 and 4 than in groups 1 and 2. Since the negative rate of urinary cytologic examinations of these 15 cases was 33.3%, cystoscopic examination was necessary for screening of bladder tumor.