Fundamentals of Urine and Body Fluid Analysis 5th Ed (Nancy A. Brunzel)

As stated in the preface of the first edition (1994), “the purpose of this textbook is to present the fundamental principles of urine and body fluid analysis” and “to serve as a straightforward, in-depth teaching and reference text”. As with previous editions, the task of achieving a balance in depth and breadth of content to meet all needs is challenging. I still believe that to gain a true understanding of a subject requires more than the mere memorization of facts. Therefore a guiding principle in the format and writing of this book is to present basic and comprehensive information in a manner that arouses interest, enhances learning, and facilitates understanding and mastery of the content. A foundation knowledge of each body fluid in health is established before pathologic conditions are discussed. This enables readers to build their skills in interpreting and correlating test results with disease states. The intended audience is practicing laboratory professionals—medical laboratory scientists, medical laboratory technicians—as well as faculty of undergraduate and graduate educational programs in medical laboratory science. In the medical laboratory, this text is useful as a training guide and reference. Note that other healthcare professionals, such as physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and nurses can also benefit. Although the content can be comprehensive and detailed, educators can easily adapt it to the level desired for their students.