Semiquantitative determination of urinary glucose: comparison of home-made strip and routine tests

Glucose oxidase paper strips for semiquantitative determination of glucose in urine are commercially available but details of their preparation are not published. The purpose of this study was to produce such strips, using a coupled enzyme glucose oxidase-peroxidase reaction which would yield purple color with ortho-tolidine, and safranin upon dipping into urine containing glucose. In this present study, without any special equipment, special humidity and temperature control, the new reagent strip named R-strip could be successfully prepared in the atmospheric conditions of Thailand. R-strips were evaluated against random urine added with various amounts of glucose in comparison with a commercial strip (T-strip), Benedict's test, and a commercial tablet (C-tablet), routinely used in laboratories. The developed strips were found to be as specific as T-strip and more sensitive than other tests.