Observing cloudy urine can be distressful and a person may worry about the possible health problems. Hence it is better to be aware of the causes and symptoms of cloudy urine in women, as it can signify serious health hazards in some cases.
Simple things like temporary dehydration and occasional vaginal discharge can lead to cloudy urine, and a lot of people have observed cloudy urine at least once in their lifetime. However, constant and chronic cloudy urine can be a sign of serious health problems which need to be dealt with, as early as possible, to avoid diseases. But what is cloudy urine? It is characterized by an abnormal type of urine caused by infections in urinary tract, due to various reasons, which results in expulsion of excessive chemicals and substances through urine. These expulsions change the original color of the urine, making it appear cloudy.
Well, there are many causes of cloudy urine and some of them are gender specific and hence it is essential for both men and women to be able to differentiate between the causes of cloudy urine. The auses of cloudy urine in men include, semen in urine, sexually transmitted diseases, kidney infections, urinary bladder infections, prostatitis, and proteinuria, etc. Some of the above factors can cause cloudy urine in women too, but their manifestation is a little different. Apart from this, there are lot of other gender-specific factors associated with cloudy urine.
Causes
Given below are some of the most prominent causes of cloudy urine that many women experience. These causes may or may not show any prior symptoms, such as, pain in abdomen, discomfort in vagina or reproductive organs, and significant blood in urine, etc.
Abnormal Vaginal Secretions
Abnormal vaginal secretions are one of the most common factors that can cause cloudy urine. Women in general do secrete vaginal discharge but when excessive amount of discharge is secreted it can lead to cloudy urine. This condition can be a result of yeast infection, which is caused by a fungus. In this case, the cloudy urine can also be associated with vaginal itching, and redness as well.
Sexual Transmitted Infections
Unprotected sexual intercourse with an infected partner can directly lead to various sexually transmitted diseases and one of the prominent symptoms of few of the sexually transmitted infections, in women, is cloudy urine. A woman suffering from gonorrhea, a sexually transmitted disease also suffered by men, is closely associated with cloudy urine. Apart from this, other symptoms of gonorrhea include pain in the vagina, and burning sensation while urinating.
Menstruation
Women who are menstruating can experience cloudy urine sometimes, but many women are confused between cloudy urine and blood in urine. Sometimes, it may happen that blood and urine may pass at the same time which may appear as if there is blood in urine. But in many cases, the blood in urine can also be caused due to certain infections, hence women need to differentiate between menstruation blood and bleeding due to infection.
Pre Eclampsia
This a serious condition that can occur during the second or third trimester of a pregnancy. During pregnancy, if the women suffers from chronic hypertension, albuminuria, and fluid retention they are likely to observe cloudy urine. Albuminuria involves protein expulsion through urine which makes the urine look cloudy.
Apart from this, urinary tract infection, kidney stones, and cystitis can also lead to cloudy urine. If you observe continuous cloudy urine, it is suggested you contact your doctor as soon as possible for diagnosing the underlying cause. The doctor may ask you to undergo various urine analysis tests to confirm the diagnosis, and would prescribe treatment accordingly. So the next time you observe cloudy urine, you know what to do!
