[Urine testing with a test strip: criteria for the exclusion of normal specimens from the microscopic sediment study]

A test tape for detection of urinary leukocytes was examined in respect of its applicability for identification of normal urine samples. 198 urine samples of ambulatory nephrological patients were tested and the results compared with the microscopic evaluation of the sediment. Sensitivity of the tape was 96.7%, specificity 86.3% and the false negative rate 0.5%. The combination of positive tape readings for leukocytes, blood and protein eliminates false results completely. In the present study, 35.4% of the urine samples were graded as normal and could be excluded from the time-consuming microscopic sediment examination. Samples with positive tape readings for leukocytes require microscopic verification.