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Microalbumin, 24 Hrs. Urine

24-Hr Urine Microalbumin

This 24-hour urine test measures tiny amounts of albumin that leak through the kidneys. It is the most precise method for detecting early diabetic kidney disease before significant damage occurs.

24-HOUR URINE24 HOURSNO FASTING
AEDAED99
  • Free home collection
  • Physician-reviewed report

24 Hours

Turnaround

24-Hour Urine

Sample

About This Test

What the Microalbumin, 24 Hrs. Urine test tells you

Albumin is the most plentiful protein in blood, and healthy kidney filters hold almost all of it inside the circulation. When those filters begin to leak, small quantities start appearing in the urine long before anything registers on a routine dipstick and long before any symptom is felt. This test collects every drop of urine passed over a full day and measures the total amount of albumin lost in that time.

Collecting across a whole day removes the largest source of error in urine testing. Albumin loss rises and falls with posture, activity, blood pressure and fluid intake, so a single sample captures only one moment. A full-day collection averages all of it and gives the most exact figure available for how much albumin the kidneys are letting through, which is why it is used when a screening test has been abnormal and a firm answer is needed.

The finding matters most in diabetes and long-standing high blood pressure, where a persistent leak is the earliest visible sign that the kidney's small vessels are under strain. That is also the encouraging part: it appears at a stage when tighter blood pressure and glucose control, and certain medications, can still slow or stabilise the change. It is a marker of blood-vessel health more generally too. One abnormal collection is never treated as a conclusion, because fever, urinary infection, heavy exercise, heart failure and menstruation can all lift albumin loss temporarily.

Sample type
24-Hour Urine
Measured in
mg/24h
Turnaround
24 Hours
Fasting
Not required
Best for
All ages
Why Get Tested?

Gold standard for detecting early kidney damage in diabetic patients and assessing cardiovascular risk in hypertensive individuals.

  • Most precise measurement

    A full day's collection averages out hour-to-hour swings and gives the firmest figure for how much albumin is being lost.

  • Confirms a screening result

    When a spot test suggests a leak, this collection establishes whether it is real and how large.

  • Detects strain early

    In diabetes, albumin appears in the urine well before blood tests of kidney function begin to shift.

  • Guides protective treatment

    A confirmed, persistent leak often prompts your doctor to review blood pressure medication and glucose control while the change is still reversible.

When This Test Is Ordered

Reasons your doctor may request the Microalbumin, 24 Hrs. Urine test

Your doctor may order this test for any of the reasons below. Some are routine checks, others follow specific symptoms or an earlier result.

  • Confirming an abnormal spot test

    • You have diabetes and a spot urine screening test has come back abnormal.
    • Spot testing has given inconsistent results and a definitive figure is required.

  • Blood pressure & cardiovascular risk

    • Your blood pressure has been high for years and a precise measure of albumin loss is wanted.
    • Cardiovascular risk is being assessed and your doctor wants the kidney's contribution to that picture.

  • Medication & known kidney disease

    • Albumin loss needs quantifying before or after a change in kidney-protective medication.
    • A known kidney condition is being followed and repeated, comparable measurements are needed.
Preparation
The short version
No prep needed.
  • 24-Hour Urine
  • Free home collection
  • No fasting
  • Results in 24 Hours
  1. 1
    Book any time

    No fasting window: pick any slot that suits you, online or on WhatsApp.

  2. 2
    We come to you

    A DHA-licensed nurse collects your sample at home or in the office: free home collection.

  3. 3
    Results in 24 Hours

    A physician-reviewed, easy-to-read report lands securely by WhatsApp and email.

Prep note
Physician reviewed

No fasting is needed and you should eat and drink as usual.

On the morning you begin, pass your first urine into the toilet and note the time, because the collection starts from that moment. Every passing of urine after that goes into the container provided, including overnight, and the collection ends with your first urine at the same time the next morning, which does go in.

Keep the container closed and cool between uses, and add nothing to it. Avoid strenuous exercise during the collection day.

Postpone the test if you have a urinary infection, a fever, or are menstruating, and tell the team about any medication you take, particularly for blood pressure or diabetes.

Understanding Your Results

A result in the Normal band, reported in mg/24h, means the albumin your kidneys let through over the full day was within the expected amount. Microalbuminuria means a small but persistent leak: the earliest visible sign that the kidney's filters are under strain, and it appears at a stage where tighter blood pressure and glucose control, and certain medicines, can still slow the change. A High result means a larger loss and needs your doctor's assessment. One raised collection is never a conclusion. Fever, a urinary infection, strenuous exercise, heart failure and menstruation all lift albumin temporarily, and the figure is only as good as the collection: missing a single passing of urine understates the true loss. The test shows that albumin is leaking, not why. Your doctor interprets it with your blood pressure, glucose control, kidney blood tests and symptoms.

SmartReport
30300
Healthy zone15mg/24hNormal
Reference ranges · mg/24h
Normal
Normal albumin excretion.
0–29
Microalbuminuria
Early kidney involvement: discuss with your physician.
30–299
High
Significant albuminuria: consult your physician.
300–2000

Ranges are a guide: your physician interprets your result alongside your symptoms and history.

Reading a High or Low Result

  • What a higher result can point to

    • Diabetes affecting the small filtering vessels of the kidney.
    • Long-standing or poorly controlled high blood pressure.
    • Glomerular disease, where the filtering units themselves are inflamed or damaged.
    • A urinary tract infection or a fever during the collection period.
    • Strenuous exercise, or menstruation, at the time of collection.
    • Heart failure, which raises pressure within the kidney's circulation.

These are possibilities, not diagnoses. A single value outside the reference range is interpreted alongside your symptoms, history and other tests: your doctor decides what it means for you.

Limitations & Safety

What this test cannot tell you

  • The result is only as good as the collection; missing even one passing of urine understates the true loss.
  • A single raised result is not enough, because infection, fever, heavy exercise, heart failure and menstruation all cause temporary rises, so an abnormal result is normally repeated before it is acted on.
  • The test shows that albumin is leaking, not why; identifying the cause needs blood tests, imaging or specialist review.
  • A low or undetectable result carries no meaning of its own beyond the absence of a detectable leak.

Risks of the blood draw

  • Mild bruising or brief soreness where the needle went in.
  • Occasional lightheadedness, which settles after a few minutes of rest.
  • Bleeding or infection at the site, which is rare with sterile single-use equipment.
Key Points
  • 1Albumin in urine is one of the earliest signals that kidney filters are under strain.
  • 2It appears at a stage where treatment can still change the outcome, which is the point of testing for it.
  • 3A full-day collection is the most exact way to measure how much is being lost.
  • 4It is usually ordered to confirm an abnormal spot test rather than as a first screen.
  • 5Results are repeated before any conclusion is drawn, and nothing is read into a low value.
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Frequently Asked Questions

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The spot test samples one moment and is used for screening. This collection captures an entire day and gives the more exact figure, so it is usually the follow-up when a spot test is abnormal.