White cells and enzyme screening
Biomarker library
Urinalysis
Urine white blood cells
White blood cells in urine (leucocytes) signal inflammation somewhere in the urinary tract, most often from an infection.
Measured in your health assessment, with a doctor to explain your result. Book yours
Why it matters
The dipstick detects an enzyme they release, leucocyte esterase. Together with nitrites, it is a good screen for a urine infection.
What a result can mean
Lower than the range
None is the normal result.
Higher than the range
White cells usually point to a urine infection, but they also occur with kidney stones, inflammation of the kidneys or bladder, some sexually transmitted infections, and contamination from vaginal discharge.
What can help
With symptoms, a urine culture identifies the infection and the right antibiotic. If white cells persist without an infection, further tests look for other causes.
Read it with
NoteGeneral educational illustration. Colours, sizes and movement are simplified. This is not a scan or a simulation of your body. General information, not personal medical advice: a doctor reads your own results with your history.
Know your urine white blood cells.
Measured in your health assessment and explained by the doctor who reviews your results.