Each year, approximately 5.7 million geriatric adults in the U.S. experience urinary tract infections (UTIs).^1,2 Standard urine collection methods, such as dipsticks, are often inadequate for this population due to challenges like urinary incontinence or cognitive impairment.³ These difficulties create a need for improved methods that ease the burden on healthcare providers and caregivers. By streamlining the process, our approach aims to make UTI testing more accessible, enabling earlier detection and reducing the need for hospital visits and doctor appointments.

Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) are infections that occur in any part of the urinary system, including the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra. UTIs are particularly common in older adults, and symptoms can be atypical, including confusion, agitation, or changes in behavior, rather than the classic symptoms of burning sensation during urination or frequent urges to urinate. If left untreated, UTIs in older adults can lead to serious complications, including sepsis, kidney damage, and increased risk of falls.

Urinalysis is a crucial diagnostic tool for detecting UTIs and other urinary system abnormalities. Standard procedure typically involves collecting a clean-catch midstream urine sample and using at-home dipstick tests, or sending the sample to a laboratory for analysis. Collecting samples using this method has proven to be difficult within this population. A project done at Clemson University developed a baby diaper incorporating an integrated urinalysis test strip. In contrast, our project focuses on enabling the extraction of urine samples for analysis.