Q: I am 28 weeks pregnant and my urine test shows 10-12/hpf calcium oxalate. Is it safe? Also, there is a trace of albumin and have pus cells in the order of 4-6 /hpf. Is there a problem?

A:The majority of crystals found in the urinary sediment are of limited clinical value and most patients with presence of crystals in urine (crystalluria) do not have and will not develop kidney stones. Many benign situations can provoke crystal formation. In most cases, the crystals seen are not present in the freshly voided specimen and alkalisation and refrigeration promote its formation. Calcium oxalate crystals are seen most frequently and in the majority of cases, the presence of these crystals is without any clinical meaning. But in case there is recurrent massive crystalluria, it may suggest the formation of calcium oxalate stones. The other parameters are within normal biological reference intervals.