Smart diaper technology is now available for incontinent adults and special needs children

Date: Aug-26-2013Pixie Scientific has announced Pixie Briefs, the first adult incontinence product that screens for urinary tract infections and tracks hydration. The product consists of disposable briefs, smart phone or tablet application and an online service. The disposable briefs contain an indicator panel on the front, which performs urine analysis. The panel is then scanned by Pixie Scientific's smartphone or tablet application, which transfers the data to Pixie Scientific's secure online service for analysis and long-term monitoring.

Pixie Briefs enable unobtrusive health monitoring. Pixie Briefs do not contain any electronics, and dry chemical reagents within the indicator panel do not come into contact with skin. Scanning takes several seconds and is recommended to be performed daily. The application issues an alert only if there is a need to consult a physician for further testing, in which case historical data can be automatically shared with the physician.

For elderly adults, signs of urinary tract infections are particularly difficult to spot because the effects of aging prevent the immune system from mounting an aggressive response to infection. Left untreated, UTI leads to behavioral changes that may be mistaken for early signs of dementia, such as delirium and agitation, as well as poor motor, dizziness, falls, and hospitalization. In adults already diagnosed with dementia or Alzheimer's, who have challenges communicating, urinary tract infections also cause symptoms of dementia to appear to take a turn for the worse.

For older children with special needs, for whom urine collection is a particular challenge, Pixie Briefs enable seamless collection and analysis in the comfort of their home.

For adults recovering from surgery, at risk of urinary tract infections due to in-dwelling catheters and immunosuppressive drugs, Pixie Briefs enable monitoring before symptoms progress.

"When we launched Smart Diapers for children, we were flooded with messages asking us to make the Smart Diaper™ technology widely available. We received personal stories from children of aging parents who suffer from multiple hospitalizations every year due to urinary tract infections, as well as from parents of children with special needs who spend hours at the physician's office trying to collect urine. We also heard from nurses and heads of care facilities. We hope Pixie Briefs will improve the time you can spend with your loved ones" said Jennie Rubinshteyn, co-founder of Pixie Scientific.

Katy Filke, PhD, gerontologist and founder of Aging 2.0 said "Pixie Briefs empower caregivers with real-time data about urinary tract infections and hydration. This is particularly important since 30-40% of older patients with serious infections do not exhibit the common symptoms of UTIs and dehydration, which can exacerbate cognitive impairment. Pixie Briefs enable caregivers to continuously and proactively monitor the health of their loved ones in ways that has never been possible before."

Pixie Briefs are expected to be widely available for purchase in the second half of 2014. If you currently purchase adult incontinence products and would like to participate in our pilot study in 2013, please sign up at http://pixiescientific.com/collections/pilot-study.
Courtesy: Medical News Today Note: Any medical information available in this news section is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional.