A new rapid urine test could lead to more targeted and effective treatment of urinary tract infections (UTI), researchers say.

It currently takes labs two to three days to determine which antibiotic would work best against an individual’s UTI.

But the new test can turn around results in just under six hours, creating the potential for same-day antibiotic prescriptions for a UTI, researchers reported in this month's issue of the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy.

“By the time the laboratory delivers the result under current methods, a patient may already have finished their antibiotics, or been given ones that do not work,” said researcher Oliver Hancox, CEO of Astratus Limited, a spin-out company of the University of Reading in the U.K.

“Being able to tell a doctor the same day which antibiotic to use means the patient gets the right treatment sooner, reducing the risk of resistance developing and their infection turning into potentially lethal sepsis,” Hancox said in a news release.

Current methods require a urine sample to be cultured overnight, so bacteria can grow to identifiable levels.

The new test uses a cartridge of fine tubes pre-loaded with different antibiotics. The cartridge is dipped into a urine sample, and optical imaging tracks bacterial growth for six hours.

If growth is blocked, the antibiotic works against that person’s infection. If not, it doesn’t.

To make sure the new test is accurate, researchers analyzed 352 urine samples from patients with suspected UTIs.

Results from the new test agreed with the current method in 97% of cases involving seven first-line antibiotics for treating UTIs.

A second study of 90 duplicate samples showed nearly 99% agreement, regardless of whether urine samples had been stored with a preservative.

"UTIs are a common reason that patients need antibiotics, and getting the right treatment first time could be a lifesaver,” said Dr. Matthew Inada-Kim, a researcher at the University of Southampton in the U.K., who was not involved in the study.

“A test that works on samples we already collect as standard, and gives us answers the same day, is exactly the kind of tool that could change how we manage these infections in practice,” he added in a news release.

Atratus Limited was founded in November 2024 by the research team behind the test. The company is working to take the test to market. This new study was funded by the U.K.