Hyaline cast Information and Courses from MediaLab, Inc.
These are the MediaLab courses that cover Hyaline cast and links to relevant pages within the course.
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| Identify the urine sediment element indicated by the arrow in the illustration: | View Page |
| Identify the urine sediment element shown by the arrow: | View Page |
| Identify the urine sediment elements shown by the arrow: | View Page |
| Which of the following casts might be found in urine of a healthy individual after strenuous exercise: | View Page |
| Which of the following casts might be found in the urine of a healthy individual after strenuous exercise: | View Page |
| Match the following: | View Page |
| The patient was a female and the urinalysis was completed within two hours of collection. Which of the following findings are inconsistent with the rest of the report? | View Page |
| True or false? Hyaline casts are present in this slide. | View Page |
| What is the element that is indicated by the arrow in this image? | View Page |
| Formation and Significance of Casts Casts are cylindrical bodies formed either in the distal convoluted tubules or the collecting ducts of the kidney. Since the walls of the tubule act as a mold for cast formation, the width of the tubule determines the width of the cast. Thus, narrow casts are formed in the distal tubules while broad casts are formed in the collecting ducts.
The matrix of all casts is thought to be Tamm-Horsfall protein, a glycoprotein secreted by the distal loop of Henle and the distal tubule. This protein entraps cells and granular material of tubular origin.
Very few casts are seen in the urine of a person without renal disease, except for hyaline casts, which may be transiently present after strenuous exercise, and during fever, diuretic therapy, and congestive heart failure.
A significant number of urinary casts usually indicates the presence of renal disease.
| View Page |
| Granular Casts Granular casts are composed of plasma protein aggregates and cellular remnants. Granular casts appear as cylinders of coarse, or fine, highly refractive particles. Coarsely granular casts (yellow arrow) contain large, coarse dark yellow or dark brown granules. They are very irregular in shape as shown in this high power magnification under the brightfield microscope. A hyaline cast can be seen just to the left of the coarse granular cast (blue arrow). | View Page |
| Coarse Granular Casts Coarse granular casts lose detail under phase contrast and become more difficult to identify. Conversely, the hyaline cast is distinctly visible under phase contrast.
A hyaline case is visible just left of center in this image, and a coarse granular cast is negatively outlined on the left. | View Page |
| Match the following: | View Page |
| Hyaline Casts Hyaline casts are clearly visible under phase contrast, appearing as dark, nearly homogenous cylinders. | View Page |
| Hyaline Casts Hyaline casts are the type most commonly seen in the urine sediment. A few hyaline casts may occasionally be found in normal urine, and hyaline casts may be seen after strenuous exercise, during fever, diuretic therapy. Pathologically, hyaline casts may be seen with congestive heart failure, and may be seen together with other types of casts in a variety of renal diseases. Hyaline casts have a refractive index similar to the urine in which they are suspended. For this reason, hyaline casts will appear almost invisible under brightfield microscopy, but are easily of seen by phase-contrast microscopy. | View Page |
| Mucous Threads Mucous threads are semi-transparent under brightfield microscopy and could be mistaken for hyaline casts. They occur as ribbon-like strands with poorly defined edges, pointed or split ends and longitudinal striations. | View Page |