Screening for kidney malfunction using injection moulded plastic urinalysis cartridge

We have designed and fabricated an injection moulded plastic urinalysis cartridge and its reader to measure the concentrations of albumin and creatinine in the same sample and calculate the ACR (albumin/creatinine ratio) value for detecting kidney failure. A COC (Cyclic Olefin Copolymer) cartridge with a sample gathering pipette, pneumatic inlet, a needle to transfer pneumatic pressure to the sample gathering pipette, and two measurement modules to measure the albumin and creatinine levels in a urine sample were fabricated. A cartridge reader with LEDPD optics, pneumatic pump, and solution mixing motors was also fabricated. This system also has a sample solution-measurement / reagent-mixing mechanism using iron balls and permanent magnet with attached DC motors. We perform CV (coefficient of variation) testing for creatinine and albumin, with resulting CV values of less than 11%, which makes this process potentially suitable for commercial applications.

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