Correlating the Sonographic Finding of Echogenic Debris in the Bladder Lumen With Urinalysis

The purpose of this study was to determine the significance of urinary bladder debris detected by sonography.

We conducted a retrospective analysis of urinalysis results in age-matched patients with and without bladder debris detected by transabdominal sonography. Patients were recruited from a radiology database search for bladder sonograms either with words suggesting echogenic debris or by a clinical history suggesting an infectious course. The sonograms were randomized and read by a single radiologist, who was blinded to case versus control. The urinalysis and sonographic results were analyzed by the Fisher exact test.

There was no statistically significant correlation between the finding of debris on sonography and the frequency of abnormal urinalysis results, regardless of the quality of debris (layering versus floating). The only variable that was significantly associated with abnormal urinalysis results was a clinical history suggesting infection.

A urinalysis should not be routinely recommended to work up the finding of urinary bladder debris on sonography.