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Intel Lab Diagnostics Dubai
Single Biomarker

Protein, Total, 24 Hours Urine

24-Hr Urine Protein

This test quantifies total protein excreted over 24 hours: the gold standard for measuring kidney protein loss. It helps diagnose and classify kidney diseases like nephrotic syndrome.

24-HOUR URINE24 HOURSNO FASTING
AEDAED75
  • Free home collection
  • Physician-reviewed report

24 Hours

Turnaround

24-Hour Urine

Sample

About This Test

What the Protein, Total, 24 Hours Urine test tells you

This test collects all the urine passed over a full day and measures the total quantity of protein in it. It is a kidney test, not a blood test: it is asking how much protein is escaping into the urine, which is an entirely different question from the total protein circulating in the bloodstream. Healthy kidneys return almost all filtered protein to the blood, so urine normally contains only traces.

Measuring a whole day's output removes the effect of how much you drank and when, and gives the most exact figure available for how much protein the kidneys are letting go. The size of that loss is one of the central measurements in kidney medicine. It separates a mild, incidental finding from the heavy loss that causes visible swelling and a raised risk of clots and infection. The pattern also carries information: loss dominated by albumin points towards the filtering units, a mixture of smaller proteins points towards the tubules, and unusual proteins can suggest a bone-marrow disorder.

Because it is precise but demanding, the full-day collection is usually reserved for situations where the exact figure changes what happens next: establishing a diagnosis, deciding whether a kidney biopsy is warranted, or judging the response to immune-suppressing treatment. For routine monitoring, most clinicians now use the protein-to-creatinine ratio from a single sample instead. Whichever is used, your doctor interprets the result with blood tests, blood pressure and the clinical picture rather than on its own.

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 quantifying proteinuria, diagnosing nephrotic syndrome, and monitoring treatment response in kidney diseases.

  • Most exact quantification

    Measuring a whole day's urine gives the firmest figure for protein loss, unaffected by fluid intake or the timing of the sample.

  • Grades kidney protein loss

    The amount lost separates a minor, incidental finding from heavy loss that needs prompt specialist attention.

  • Guides specialist decisions

    Kidney specialists use it when the exact figure influences a biopsy or a change in immune-suppressing treatment.

  • Tracks treatment response

    Repeat collections show whether protein loss is genuinely falling on therapy or continuing to rise.

When This Test Is Ordered

Reasons your doctor may request the Protein, Total, 24 Hours 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.

  • When an exact figure is needed

    • Protein has been found on a dipstick or a spot ratio and an exact figure is now needed.
    • A spot protein-to-creatinine ratio has given borderline or inconsistent results.

  • Suspected nephrotic syndrome

    • Nephrotic syndrome is suspected because of swelling and abnormal blood protein results.

  • Treatment decisions & systemic disease

    • A kidney biopsy or immune-suppressing treatment is being considered.
    • Response to treatment for glomerular disease needs to be measured accurately.
    • Kidney involvement in a systemic disease such as lupus or amyloidosis is being assessed.
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

The collection starts after you empty your bladder first thing in the morning: that urine goes into the toilet and the time is noted.

Everything passed from then on goes into the container supplied, including during the night, and the collection ends with your first urine at the same time the following morning, which is included. Keep the container closed and cool, and neither add nor remove anything.

No fasting is required and you should eat and drink normally, but avoid strenuous exercise during the collection day. Postpone if you have a fever, a urinary infection or are menstruating, and tell the team about your medicines, especially anti-inflammatory painkillers and blood-pressure treatment.

Understanding Your Results

This figure is the protein your kidneys let through over a full day. A result in the Normal band, 0 to 149 mg/24h, indicates no significant loss during that collection and needs no action. A High result, 150 to 3000 mg/24h, means protein is being lost, and the size of the figure matters: a heavy loss is a different clinical situation from a small, incidental one. The commonest reason for a misleading result is an incomplete collection: one missed passing of urine understates the total, and nothing in the report reveals it. A fever, a urinary tract infection or heavy exercise during the collection day can raise the figure temporarily, so an abnormal result is often repeated before conclusions are drawn. The test shows how much protein is lost, not which protein or why. Your doctor reads it with your kidney function, blood pressure, other urine results and your history.

SmartReport
150
Healthy zone75mg/24hNormal
Reference ranges · mg/24h
Normal
Normal: minimal protein loss.
0–149
High
Elevated: may indicate kidney involvement.
150–3000

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

    • Glomerular disease, where the filtering membranes leak protein into the urine.
    • Diabetic kidney disease that has progressed beyond its earliest stage.
    • Pre-eclampsia during pregnancy.
    • Tubular disease, in which small proteins are no longer reabsorbed.
    • Abnormal protein production in a bone-marrow disorder such as myeloma.
    • Infection, fever or heavy exertion during the collection period.

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

  • Accuracy depends entirely on a complete collection, and a single missed passing of urine understates the result without anyone being able to tell.
  • The test measures how much protein is lost, not which protein or why, so further testing is usually needed.
  • Temporary rises from fever, infection or heavy exercise can be mistaken for kidney disease if the collection is not repeated.
  • A low result carries no meaning of its own; it simply indicates no significant loss during that day.

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
  • 1This measures protein leaving the body in urine, which is a kidney question, not the protein circulating in blood.
  • 2The collection covers a full day, and that is precisely what makes the figure exact.
  • 3Heavy protein loss is a different clinical situation from a small, incidental one.
  • 4It is generally a confirmatory or specialist test rather than a first-line screen.
  • 5An incomplete collection is the commonest reason for a misleading result.
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Frequently Asked Questions

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No, and the two answer different questions. The blood test measures protein circulating in the bloodstream, while this measures protein escaping into the urine, which reflects how well the kidney filters are holding protein back.