Low-cost and Portable Creatinine Electrochemical Sensor for Non-invasive Chronic Kidney Disease Monitoring

Creatinine, a metabolized product of phosphocreatine in muscles, is excreted via urine by kidneys. Creatinine concentration in urine is an indicator of renal function for a patient with chronic kidney disease. A single-use and portable screen-printed carbon electrode with copper oxide nanostructure was developed for creatinine detection via copper-creatinine complex formation. SEM was deployed to visualize the copper oxide nanostructure. Creatinine measurement was performed in 0.1 M PBS at pH 6.5 with a smartphone application and portable near-field communication potentiostat. Five chemicals were tested as interferences. The CuO/SPCE shows linear and repeatable responses of creatinine from 0–30 mM, which makes it an appealing alternative for quick and reliable CRE detection.