The clinical value of the new paediatric urine collector

Children unable to control urination are responsible for the majority of mistakes in diagnosing urinary infection. The best way of collecting urine is suprapubic punction of the urinary bladder, which is less frequently used due to its impracticality and aggressive approach. Catheterization is also not widely used, especially in primary health care. In 1998, pediatric nephrologists from Slovenia tried to solve this problem. They designed a urine collector similar to a plastic bag, but containing a plastic tube separating the last urine jet. The aim of our study was to determine whether there was a difference in the number of bacteria in 1 mL of urine between the samples taken by means of the plastic bag, the urine collector and a catheter. In the course of the same day, three urine samples, in an undetermined order, were collected from each of 32 children. By this study we confirmed that the urine collector was superior to the plastic bag. Due to the small number of the examinees, we were unable to prove that the collector was equal or better in comparison with the catheter.