• Pooja Devi Lohano, Mohsina Ibrahim, Syed Jamal Raza, Murtaza Gowa, and Sadam Hussain Baloch.
• Department of Pediatrics, National Institute of Child Health, Karachi, Pakistan.
• J Coll Physicians Surg Pak. 2022 Apr 1; 32 (4): 483-486.

ObjectiveTo compare the finger-stick β-hydroxybutyrate (β-OHB) method accuracy with dipstick urine test for the detection of ketone bodies to diagnose diabetic ketoacidosis in children.Study DesignCross-sectional study.Place And Duration Of StudyDepartment of Pediatrics, National Institute of Child Health, Karachi, from March to August 2021.MethodologyNinety-six known or newly diagnosed diabetic patients aged 2-15 years with suboptimal glycemic control and diabetic ketoacidosis were included in the study. A urine dipstick test was utilised to evaluate the absence or presence of ketones in the urine. In point-of-care, blood β-OHB levels were recorded.ResultsAmong 96 children, with median age of 10 years (IQR=6-11), 11 (11.5%) children had traces of urine ketones, 7 (7.3%) had + urine ketones, 19 (19.8%) had ++ urine ketones, 26 (27.1%) had +++ ketones and 19 (19.8%) had ++++ ketones. In 66 patients (68.75%), capillary blood ketone was observed to be positive by a finger-stick β-OHB method. The finger-stick β-OHB method had a higher sensitivity (90.4% vs. 84.9%), specificity (100% vs. 91.3%), and accuracy (92.7% vs. 86.5%) than the dipstick urine test.ConclusionFinger-stick β-OHB method can serve as a more accurate alternative to the urinary dipstick method for the measurement of ketones and to exclude ketosis and diagnosis of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) in hyperglycemic children.Key WordsDiabetes mellitus, Hyperglycemia, Diabetic ketoacidosis, Point-of-care testing, Ketosis, Urine ketones, Acetoacetates.

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