Dry chemistry test cards for the early diagnosis of urinary tract infections

U-Lab^® is the first marketed product and a registered trademark. It is EU certified as IVD (in-vitro diagnostic; CE mark), certification in other markets like USA are planned. U-Lab^® is a self test for home diagnosis of UTI mainly for women, who are recurrently suffering from that condition. It indicates the presence of nitrite as well as leucocytes in urine, in line with recommendations of international guidelines.

The product U-Test^® is derived from U-Lab^® by combina­tion with a special tissue, allowing it to be integrated easily in diapers and other incontinence materials of all sizes. It helps healthcare professionals to diagnose or exclude UTI in infants with unspecific fever or elderly incontinent women, who often suffer from that condition. U-Test^® has been successfully evaluated in a clinical trial and became EU certified as IVD end of 2010.

The product U-Check^TM Alarm for diabetic patients com­bines the indication of nitrite and leucocytes in the urine with the detection of glucose and ketone, which may be signs of a disordered metabolism. The symptoms of a UTI and a potentially dangerous disordered metabolism (hyperglycaemia, ketoacidosis) are often very similar and the latter may be caused by UTI. Diabetic patients are suffering much more often from UTI than non diabetics. The product will be EU certified during 2012.

Indwelling catheterization is known to cause UTI in almost all affected patients. On the contrary, intermittent catheterization is not supposed to systematically lead to this condition in patients using this method for continence management. Therefore, efficient and regular monitoring, aiming for the early detection of UTI, is of utmost importance to the latter group, which includes patients with Spinal Cord Injury, Multiple Sclerosis and Spina Bifida. In order to simplify the required test procedure, Swiss Medical Solution has developed the innovative and easy to use product U-Look^®. It is combining a urine test card similar to U-Lab^® with a urine bag, which is com­patible with any intermittent catheter.