For such a seemingly simple sample there’s a lot you can learn from a urinalysis. Many of us also have a fair amount of uncertainty around much of the 'how' of urine sample handling, analysis and interpretation. It’s also the one bit of lab work where being good at in-house testing can make a big difference to the reliability of your results. 

We KNOW you’ll have had some disagreements at some point in your career about at least a few of the questions we answer in this episode, like fridge vs benchtop, how old is too old for a urine sample, how long after starting antibiotics can you still culture, is it even worth culturing a free-flow sample, WHEN should I culture, can you trust your dipstick, can you trust AI, why some urinary bugs just won't die, and what the heck is the deal with casts?! I also suspect that, like us, you’ll learn a few things that you didn’t even KNOW you should know. 

Our guest is Dr Kristen Todhunter, a pathologist for the SVS Pathology Network who confesses to having a bit of a soft spot for all things microbiology. She answers all of the questions we've ever had around how to get the most from your urinalysis. 

Thanks to the SVS Pathology Network, who our Aussie listeners will know as Vetnostics in NSW, QML Vetnostics in Queensland, TML Vetnostics in Tasmania, ASAP in Victoria and Vetpath in WA, for providing us with the brainpower for our pathology series and for supporting the podcast. If you love new toys and tech (or if you like lasers!) you should definitely check out this video about Maldi TOF spectrometry - the amazing new technology that will explain why SVS clients will now get super-fast turnaround times for their microbiology testing. 

Go to thevetvault.com for show notes and to check out our guests’ favourite books, podcasts and everything else we talk about in the show.

If you want to lift your clinical game, go to vvn.supercast.com for a free 2-week trial of our short and sharp high-value clinical podcasts.

We love to hear from you. If you have a question for us or you’d like to give us some feedback please leave us a voice message by going to our episode page on the anchor app and hitting the record button, via email at [email protected], or just catch up with us on Instagram. 

And if you like what you heard then please share the love by clicking on the share button wherever you’re listening and sending a link to someone who you know will enjoy listening.