ABNORMAL CONSTITUENTS OF URINE – 3

TEST FOR BILE SALTS

HAY’S TEST
■ PRINCIPLE: Bile salts have the property of lowering surface tension of
the solution in which they are dissolved, which makes the sulphur
powder to sink to the bottom.

■ REAGENT: Sulphur powder

PROCEDURE OBSERVATION INFERENCE

Take 2 test tubes and Sulphur powder sinks It indicates the

name them as ‘C’ & ‘T’. to the bottom in presence of bile salts in
In ‘C’ test tube,take 2ml ‘T’ test tube and floats ‘T’ test tube.
of distilled water and in in ‘C’ test tube.
‘T’ test tube take 2ml of
urine.
Sprinkle sulphur powder
in both test tubes.

■ CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE:
● Bile salts are sodium & potassium salts of taurocholic acid and
glycocholic acid.
● Bile salts appear in urine along with bile pigments in case of
obstructive jaundice & infective hepatitis.
 TEST FOR BILE PIGMENTS
FOUCHET’S TEST
■ PRINCIPLE: Barium chloride reacts with ammonium sulphate to give
ammonium chloride and Barium sulphate.
Wet barium sulphate has the capacity to adsorb yellow
bilirubin. Fouchet’s reagent oxidizes the adsorbed bilirubin to green
colour biliverdin & blue colour bilicyanin.
■ REAGENTS:
● 10% Barium chloride
● Ammonium sulphate solution
● Fouchet’s reagent- Ferric chloride (Fecl3) + trichloroacetic acid (ccl3cooH)

PROCEDURE OBSERVATION INFERENCE

Take 10 ml of urine in a Appearance of blue or Indicates the presence
test tube and add 5ml green colour complex of bile pigments in the
of barium chloride on the filter paper. urine.
solution followed by a
few drops of
ammonium sulphate
solution.
Mix well and keep the
solution of 5 minutes.
Filter the solution
and unfold the filter
paper and dry it.
Add few drops of
Fouchet’s reagent to
the dry precipitate on
the filter paper.

■ CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Bile pigments are found in the urine along with
bile salts in
● Severe hepatitis &
● Obstructive jaundice.