Who would have thought that QR codes will find a medical function in baby diapers? If fully developed and tested, these high tech diapers might be essential in preventing little ones from getting sick.
Pixie Scientific is campaigning their project called, Smart Diapers, which is still at the testing stage. Each Smart Diaper is embedded with a urine test strip and a QR code. Whenever the baby takes a leak, the test strip indicators change color. Parents can then scan the QR code with the iPhone app, and the data is compiled for monitoring. Such data is essential to parents, and is said to possibly help prevent babies from getting UTI.
Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a problem that commonly afflicts babies. According to sources, about 8% of baby girls get the bacterial infection, while it affects about 2% of baby boys. This can happen when bacteria enters the urinary tract, causing the baby to have fever, discomfort, lack of appetite, and even pain.
UTI can be prevented by providing the child with lots of fluids to drink, so the urinary tract is constantly flushed and is free from bacteria. Changing diapers on a regular basis and not waiting for them to be saturated is also a good preventive measure.
Through these Pixie Scientific Smart Diapers, parents can monitor the amount of pee the baby fills in his or her diaper. The iPhone app also helps to keep track of urination after the QR codes are scanned. They most important thing, according to the developers of the system, is to monitor the diapers on a daily basis. It has not been fully explained if the test strips can be indicative of any other parameter other than presence of urine, but eventually they might be able to detect pH, amount of bacteria, and so on.
The goal of Pixie Scientific is to assist parents and medical practitioners by providing a ready pool of data when monitoring their children’s health. If this UTI prevention system becomes widely implemented, then a lot of medical info can be digitally recorded and transmitted, allowing doctors to make quick decisions to guide parents to keep their little ones healthy and happy.
See more baby friendly tech here: 3D printed tracheal splint and BabyPing Video monitoring.
Via Gizmodo
