Lab results - looking for opinions [PLEASE READ 1ST POST]

cosmiclynx12 said:Just to add some context to my diagnosis—I’m actually baffled by how normal my urine results look, because I’ve been having serious trouble urinating. Last month, I was dealing with kidney pain, a fever, and chills.
For the last two weeks, my ankles have been swollen, looking like they're filled with fluid, all red and painful to the touch. 😢
It was even making it hard to walk, especially first thing in the morning when I get up, and I had edema around my knees and shins that eventually cleared up.
Now, my legs and shins ache constantly, particularly if I stay seated for more than 40 minutes.
The doctors are stumped; I’ve already been to two different hospitals and seen my primary care physician. 🙄
My throat swab came back clean, and my lungs are fine too.
I was really hoping this was something urinary-related, so I'm praying they find something in the urine culture. Is it actually possible for a standard urinalysis to come back normal while the culture still picks up an infection?
I read somewhere that ESR can be elevated in cases of rheumatic fever or rheumatoid arthritis, which would indicate some kind of inflammation in the body. 😕
I'm in my early 20s.

Also, what does RDW mean? Mine is 13.4, but the reference range is 14.6 - 16.5.

Between the high sedimentation rate and this bolded value, to a layperson like me, this looks a lot like gout.
You should probably run some specific tests—check blood uric acid levels (even though they aren't always high when someone is actually suffering from gout), leukocytes, electrolytes, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and kidney function. I'm not sure if there's anything else. Definitely bring up the possibility of gout with your doctor.

Searching for Chlamydia and Mycoplasma

OBGYN swabs came back clean, no issues there.

That doesn't necessarily mean you're clear of urethritis or some lingering cystitis that's been dragging on forever... It’s also totally possible that those intracellular bacteria just slipped right past the swab if they didn't sample from the exact spot where the trouble is happening, and then there's even the possibility of pulmonary versions like psittacosis, or maybe even recurrent syndromes triggered by chronic inflammation elsewhere in the body, like issues with your teeth or something... It's honestly hard to say for sure... 🤷

I’ve been away for a bit, so I’m circling back to answer the questions left hanging.

rapidcyclist9 said:My five-year-old son just got his serology results back from a lumbar puncture. I'm wondering what these values indicate;

EBV VCA IgG positive 121
EBNA IgG positive 67
CMV IgG positive 0.8
Rubella IgG positive 14
Measles IgG positive 617

Thanks.🙂.

Ma'am,

CSF results are essentially useless without a corresponding serum panel. There are several other parameters involved that need to be factored into specific formulas before any real conclusions can be drawn.

Maria Nguyen93 said:I did an OGTT because my fertility specialist requested it ahead of my scheduled IVF treatment. Otherwise, I have no health issues.

In my view, that OGTT looks normal, though the blood sugar at the 120-minute mark is relatively low. There isn't a universal consensus on a minimum threshold for blood sugar at 120 minutes; different guidelines suggest a lower limit ranging roughly from 3.4 to 3.9 mmol/l.

cosmiclynx12 said:My gynecological swabs came back clear, so that's one less thing to worry about.

To me, this doesn't look like gout. Based on the symptoms and history provided, it feels more like reactive arthritis, much like what the colleague suggested.

It would be wise to run tests for chlamydia and mycoplasma—but specifically via a urethral swab or urine sample.

Have you dealt with any eye issues, like conjunctivitis, or perhaps some diarrhea recently?

Maria Fisher46 said:Doesn't really look like gout to me. Based on the symptoms and history... maybe reactive arthritis instead, like the other doc suggested.

Should probably run some tests for chlamydia and mycoplasma, but gotta be from a urethral swab or urine sample.

Any issues with your eyes lately—like conjunctivitis—or maybe some diarrhea recently?

Nope. 🤷

Can someone help me make sense of these..

ESR 22 -> 4-24
RDW 12.6 -> 9.0-15.0
RBC 4.77 -> 3.86-5.08
Hemoglobin 139 -> 119-157
Hematocrit 0.405 -> 0.356-0.470
MCV 84.8 -> 83.0-97.2
MCH 29.2 -> 27.4-33.9
MCHC 344 -> 320-345
WBC 9.5 -> 3.4-9.7
Platelets 295 -> 158-424
MPV 8 -> 6.8-10.4

AST 18 -> 8-30
ALT 24 -> 10-36
GGT 24 -> 9-35
Total bilirubin 6.5 -> 3-20
BUN 5.3 -> 2.8-8.3
Creatinine 92 -> 63-107
Uric acid 250 -> 134-337
Cholesterol 4.69 -> <5.2
Triglycerides 0.75 -> <2.0
HDL cholesterol 1.74 -> <1.2
Iron 7.7L -> 8-30
TIBC 50.7 -> 49-75
Glucose 4.8 -> 4.2-6.0

URINALYSIS
Specific gravity 1025 -> 1.002-1.030
pH 5 -> 5.0-9.0
Protein 0 -> 0-
Glucose 0 -> 0-
Ketones 0 -> 0-
Bilirubin 0 -> 0-0
Urobilinogen 0 -> normal
Nitrites 0 -> 0-0
Blood 0 -> 0-
Leukocyte esterase 500 -> 0-0
Erythrocyte esterase 50 -> -
WBC bulk -> 0-2
RBC 2-4 -> 0-2
Squamous epithelial cells trace presence
Mucus trace presence

I had bloodwork done because of acne issues, I'm 22. Thanks in advance

niki, your results look pretty solid overall. Your iron levels are just a touch low, but nothing to lose sleep over. As for the acne, that’s almost certainly a hormonal issue, so you really ought to dig deeper into some endocrine testing.
Also, looking at this again, it looks like you might be dealing with a bladder infection. I don't see any mention of a bacterial screen in your urine—I'm not sure if you just missed that part of the report or if the lab didn't run it, but you should definitely get a urine culture done just to be safe.

So, last week I went in for some testing and ended up with a bit of a confusing situation where my standard urinalysis came back totally clear of bacteria, yet at the exact same time, my urine culture flagged an E. coli infection. It feels like such a strange contradiction, and while I know logically it makes sense that one test is more thorough than the other, I'm still struggling to wrap my head around how that actually works. 🤷

Angela Wright said:Just realized you probably have some kind of bladder infection.

What data is even showing that?

cosmiclynx12 said:What kind of data are we actually looking at here to support that?

Elevated red blood cells and white blood cells in the urine.

dustymaker642 said:Last week I had a urine test come back completely clean—no bacteria in sight—yet at the exact same time, my urine culture flagged E. coli. Is that actually possible? It sounds like a total contradiction, so how does that even work? 🤷

It’s entirely possible, mainly because a urine culture is a far more precise diagnostic tool. A standard urinalysis is often just a quick glance—basically, a technician takes a sample and counts how many bacteria they can spot within a specific field under a microscope. It's a snapshot, but it lacks depth. A culture, however, is much more thorough; it identifies exactly which strain of bacteria you're dealing with and at what concentration. On top of that, you get an immediate antibiogram, which tells you precisely which antibiotics will actually kill the infection rather than just guessing.
What antibiotic are you currently on? If you haven't started your course yet and the lab results show that the E. coli is sensitive to nitrofurantoin, I’d strongly suggest asking your doctor for that specific one (Ninur). In my experience, whether you're looking at the direct impact or the indirect effects, it’s hands down the most effective way to clear things up—provided the sensitivity test actually confirms it'll work.

Angela Wright said:It’s definitely possible, mostly because a urine culture is a much more precise diagnostic tool. Usually, that first test is just done by having a lab tech take a sample and counting how many bacteria show up within a specific field under a microscope. A culture is more accurate because it identifies exactly which type of bacteria you're dealing with and at what concentration. Plus, they can run an antibiogram right away to see exactly which antibiotics will actually work against it.
Which antibiotic are you on? If you haven't started treatment yet and the E. coli shows sensitivity to nitrofurantoin on the antibiogram, maybe ask your doctor if you can use that (like Macrobid). In my own experience, it seems to be one of the most effective options if the results say it will work.

Thanks so much for the answer and the advice. I'm actually 13 weeks pregnant, so I really need to check in with my OB-GYN first to see what's safe for me to take and what isn't. 🤷

dustymaker642 said:Thanks for the input and the advice. I'm currently in my 13th week of pregnancy, so I really need to touch base with my OB-GYN first to see what's safe and what isn't. 🤷

Look, let's be real: E. coli is a nasty bug to be dealing with while you're pregnant. In this situation, the benefits of taking an antibiotic far outweigh any potential risks. Nitrofurantoin is a standard urinary tract antiseptic, though I can't say for certain how it compares to other antibiotics regarding fetal safety.
Go grab some D-Mannose powder; you should be able to find it at any local pharmacy or health food store. It works wonders because once you dissolve it in water, it travels straight to the bladder where it essentially latches onto the E. coli through its crystal lattice structure, making it much easier to flush out and preventing new colonies from forming. Think of it as a sugar that gets completely processed and expelled by your system. And obviously, you need to chug water constantly to keep that flow going.

Thanks again, everyone. I’ve got an appointment with my gynecologist this Wednesday, so we’ll finally see what's going on. Honestly, I'm feeling pretty anxious about it.

dustymaker642 said:Thanks again. I've got my OB-GYN appointment this Wednesday, so we'll see what happens. Honestly, I'm pretty terrified.

Don't sweat it, things will work themselves out. This kind of thing isn't even that uncommon during pregnancy.

So, I'm 38. Got diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes about two years back, and I've been on heavy insulin therapy ever since. Honestly, I've been feeling like absolute garbage for a while now—just constant, bone-deep exhaustion, aching muscles in my arms and legs, brain fog so bad I can't focus on anything, and I’ve packed on 17 lbs.
I just got some new lab results back, so if anyone here knows their stuff, maybe you could make sense of them:
TSH 1.08 ( 0.3-3.6)
FT4 9.4 (10.3-22.8)
FT3 4.00 (3.03-6.47)
AnTI-Tg 61.6 (5-100)
AnTI- TPO 4.8 (1-16)

I also have these slightly older ones... though nothing really makes sense to me. My doctor told me everything looks "normal," but honestly, what's even the point of having reference ranges if they just tell you everything is fine when numbers are clearly outside of them?

FSH 1.4 (1.8-9.4)
LH 1.3 (02.8-10.4)
ESTRADIOL 0.979 ( 0.11-0.65)
PROLACTIN 211 (81-597)
TESTOSTERONE 2.3 (0.4-2.74)
FREE TESTOSTERONE 6.6 (0.45-10.7)
ANDROSTENDIONE 17.6 (1.7-16.4)
SHBG 23.5 (20-85)

Thanks for getting back to me, Angela Wright. My doctor basically brushed it off, saying it’s no big deal, and just handed me some pills to clear it up. She didn't mention anything about a urine culture, and there wasn't even a note about bacteria in my results—I've laid out everything I know. But honestly, can high red and white blood cell counts in urine actually be linked to more serious kidney issues? I get this nagging pain in my left kidney quite often, and everyone keeps telling me that those massive dark circles under my eyes might be a sign that my kidneys are struggling... :/ thanks 🙂

restlesstinker77 said:Thanks for getting back to me, Angela Wright. My doctor basically brushed it off, saying it’s nothing major, and just handed me some pills, claiming it'll pass. She didn't mention anything about a urine culture, and there’s zero mention of bacteria in my results—I included everything I have. Is it possible that high red and white blood cell counts in my urine could point to more serious kidney issues? I get sharp pains in my left kidney pretty often, and everyone keeps telling me those massive dark circles under my eyes might be a sign of kidney trouble too... :/ thanks 🙂

You could end up with that if an untreated bladder infection migrates up to your kidneys 😢 What did she prescribe you?