Kuo Shao-Hsuan, Peraro Alberto, Lin Hsiu-Pen, Chang Chun-Hao, Li Bor-Ran
Institute of Biomedical Engineering, College of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu300, Taiwan.
Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Padua, Padova35122, Italy.
Langmuir. 2023 Feb 7;39(5):1897-1904. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c02923. Epub 2023 Jan 25.
Urinalysis is one of the simplest and most common medical tests in modern cities. With the assistance of professional technicians and equipment, people in metropolitan areas can effortlessly acquire information about their physiological conditions from traditional clinical laboratories. However, the threshold, including precise benchtop equipment and well-trained personnel, still remains a considerable dilemma for residents in healthcare-poor areas. Hence, it is a crucial and urgent topic to develop a smart and affordable widget to address this challenge. To improve the healthcare rights of residents, we proposed a disposable centrifugal microfluidic urine routine examination platform (named μCUREX) actuated with a modified hand-powered fan. Two parts of urinalysis (sediment test and chemical strip test) were integrated into the μCUREX disc. The influence on sedimentation by variant hand-powered manipulation was simulated using COMSOL. As a result, more than 70% of the sediment can be collected. Moreover, the color change of chemical strip papers (indicators for glucose, pH, protein, and occult blood) was recorded with a 3D-printed studio and analyzed after reaction with chemical-spiked and pH-adjusted artificial and human urine specimens. The whole process can be completed within 10 min, with only 200 μL of urine needed. In conclusion, we successfully constructed an ultra-low-cost point-of-care platform for urinalysis in extremely resource-poor settings. The handy size, high affordability, and user-friendliness of the μCUREX disc provide strong potential and feasibility in solving problems in resource-poor settings. Furthermore, we highly expect the μCUREX platform to improve the level of healthcare in resource-limited areas.
尿液分析是现代城市中最简单、最常见的医学检测之一。在专业技术人员和设备的协助下，大都市地区的人们可以轻松地从传统临床实验室获取有关自身生理状况的信息。然而，包括精密台式设备和训练有素的人员在内的门槛，对于医疗资源匮乏地区的居民来说仍然是一个相当大的难题。因此，开发一种智能且经济实惠的小工具来应对这一挑战是一个关键且紧迫的课题。为了改善居民的医疗保健权利，我们提出了一种由改良手摇风扇驱动的一次性离心微流控尿液常规检测平台（名为μCUREX）。尿液分析的两个部分（沉渣检测和化学试纸检测）被集成到μCUREX圆盘上。使用COMSOL模拟了不同手摇操作对沉淀的影响。结果，超过70%的沉渣可以被收集。此外，用3D打印工作室记录化学试纸条（葡萄糖、pH值、蛋白质和潜血的指示剂）的颜色变化，并在与添加化学物质和调节pH值的人工尿液和人体尿液标本反应后进行分析。整个过程可在10分钟内完成，仅需200微升尿液。总之，我们成功构建了一个超低成本的即时检测平台，用于在资源极度匮乏的环境中进行尿液分析。μCUREX圆盘便于携带的尺寸、高性价比和用户友好性，为解决资源匮乏地区的问题提供了强大的潜力和可行性。此外，我们高度期望μCUREX平台能够提高资源有限地区的医疗保健水平。
