By: Julie Cheng, MD, MAE, FAAP & Kathleen Kieran, MD, MSc, MME, FAAP
As a parent, you can tell when your baby doesn't feel well. If something seems off—like a fever, unusual fussiness or a change in feeding or diaper habits—their doctor might recommend a urine test (urinalysis) to learn more about what's going on.
Testing a child's urine (pee) can help point to certain health concerns like a urinary tract infection (UTI) or
dehydration. Pee is also tested for other conditions, such as
kidney disease or
diabetes, or when there is
blood in the pee.
Most of the time, urine is collected in the health care provider's office. A sample can also be collected at home. But how can you collect a urine sample before a child is
toilet-trained? Read on to learn more.
How to get a urine sample from an infant or toddler still in diapers
In toilet-trained children and adults, we can ask them to pee into a special cup for testing. For babies and young children who are not toilet-trained, we have a few options. Your health care provider will weigh the risk of contaminating the sample with skin bacteria against how invasive or uncomfortable some of these options can seem.
Clean catch urine
Sometimes, we can catch pee coming directly from a child peeing. Timing can be tricky before a child is toilet-trained. It requires patience, but can be easier when the child has not recently had a wet diaper.
Putting a cold, damp towel on the lower belly can stimulate the child to pee. Ideally, urine is collected in the middle of peeing (instead of at the very beginning or end of peeing).
Cotton balls or pads
If we are not testing for an infection, we can use cotton balls or a small pad to collect pee from the diaper. This method is suitable when there is no concern about contamination from outside bacteria.
This method involves putting a few cotton balls in the diaper close to where your child's pee would collect. We then squeeze out the pee from the cotton balls into a collection cup.
Urine collection bags
Another option is using a urine collection bag to collect pee. These bags are made to fit over your baby's genital area (see image at right). They have an adhesive strip on one end that gently sticks to the skin and keeps it in place. The child then pees directly into the bag.
There can be some sticky residue on the skin from the collection bag. This can be wiped off gently after the pee is collected. There can also be contamination from skin bacteria in the urine sample.
Note: If pee collected by clean catch, cotton balls or urine bag tests positive for infection, it's recommended that the results be confirmed. Your child's health care provider can then use one of the following methods:
Catheterized specimen
A catheter is a thin tube that is gently slid into the bladder to directly collect pee (see image above). The pee flows into a sterile container. This procedure is done by a healthcare provider. It is not painful—only a little uncomfortable—and has a lower risk of contamination. This method is more commonly used when a UTI is suspected.
Suprapubic aspiration
A healthcare provider can use a needle to directly suction pee from the bladder. This involves cleaning off the skin over the lower abdomen. Then, a very thin needle is inserted from the lower belly into the bladder. This method is not commonly used but is an option when it is very important to have a specimen with little contamination.
More information
About Dr. Cheng
 Julie Cheng, MD, MAE, FAAP is an assistant professor of urology at the University of Washington and Seattle Children’s Hospital in Seattle, WA. She is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Urology. She is currently the co-chair of the Education Committee for the Section on Urology.
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About Dr. Kieran
 Kathleen Kieran, MD, MSc, MME, FAAP is a professor of urology at the University of Washington and Seattle Children's Hospital in Seattle, WA. She is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Urology. She is a member of the Section on Urology's Executive Committee.
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