Urinary Biomarkers: Diagnostic Tools for Monitoring Athletes' Health Status

Abstract

Acute or intense exercise is sometimes related to infections of the urinary tract. It can also lead to incorrect hydration as well as incorrect glomerular filtration due to the presence of high-molecular-weight proteins that cause damage to the kidneys. In this context, our study lays the foundations for the use of a urine test in a team of twelve male basketball players as a means of monitoring numerous biochemical parameters, including pH, specific weight, color, appearance, presence of bacterial cells, presence of squamous cells, leukocytes, erythrocytes, proteins, glucose, ketones, bilirubin, hemoglobin, nitrite, and leukocyte esterase, to prevent and/or treat the onset of pathologies, prescribe personalized treatments for each athlete, and monitor the athletes' health status.

Keywords: athlete’s health; biomarkers; infections; urine; élite athletes.

Figure 1

Hydration status. (A) Assessment of urine pH at 0, 1, and 3 months in a group of 12 professional basketball athletes. The data are expressed as the mean ± SD. The significance was determined by the one-way ANOVA test: ** (p < 0.01) represents significance compared with 0 months; ^### (p < 0.001) represents significance compared with 1 month. (B) assessment of specific weight at 0, 1, and 3 months in a group of 12 professional basketball athletes. The data are expressed as the mean ±SD. The significance was determined by the one-way ANOVA test *** (p < 0.001) represents significance compared with 0 months.

Figure 2

Urinary infections. (A) assessment of bacteria at 0, 1, and 3 months in a group of 12 professional basketball athletes. The data are expressed as the mean ±SD. The significance was determined by the one-way ANOVA test: * (p < 0.05) represents significance compared with 0 months; ^# (p < 0.05) represents significance compared with 1 month. (B) assessment of squamous cells at 0, 1, and 3 months in a group of 12 professional basketball athletes. The data are expressed as the mean ± SD. The significance was determined by the one-way ANOVA test: * (p < 0.05) represents significance compared with 0 months; ^# (p < 0.05) represents significance compared with 1 month. (C) assessment of leukocytes at 0, 1, and 3 months in a group of 12 professional basketball athletes. The data are expressed as the mean ± SD. The significance was determined by the one-way ANOVA test: * (p < 0.05) represents significance compared with 0 months. The unit of measurement used is n/μL (the number of bacteria or leukocytes or squamous cells in one microliter of urine).

Figure 3

Hematuria and proteinuria. (A) assessment of erythrocytes at 0, 1, and 3 months in a group of 12 professional basketball athletes. The data are expressed as the mean ±SD. The significance was determined by the one-way ANOVA test: ^# (p < 0.05) represents significance compared with one month. (B) assessment of proteins at 0, 1, and 3 months in a group of 12 professional basketball athletes. The significance was determined by the one-way ANOVA test: * (p < 0.05) and ** (p < 0.01) represent significance compared with 0 months; ^## (p < 0.01) represents significance compared with one month. The unit of measurement used is n/μL (the number of bacteria or leukocytes or squamous cells in one microliter of urine).