| What
are lab tests? |
| Laboratory
tests are medical procedures that
involve testing samples of blood,
urine, or other tissues or substances
in the body. |
| Why
does your doctor use lab tests? |
|
Your doctor uses laboratory
tests to help:·
- identify changes in your
health condition before any
symptoms occur
- diagnose a disease or condition
before you have symptoms
- plan your treatment for
a disease or condition,
- evaluate your response to
a treatment, or
- monitor the course of a
disease over time.
|
| How
are lab tests analyzed? |
| After
a blood sample is collected from
your body, it is analyzed in a
laboratory. Laboratories perform
tests on the sample to see if
it reacts to different substances.
Depending on the test, a reaction
may mean you do have a particular
condition or it may mean that
you do not have the particular
condition. Sometimes laboratories
compare your results to results
obtained from previous tests,
to see if there has been a change
in your condition. |
| What
do lab tests show? |
| Lab
tests show whether or not your
results fall within normal ranges.
Normal test values are usually
given as a range, rather than
as a specific number, because
normal values vary from person
to person. What is normal for
one person may not be normal for
another person.Some laboratory
tests are precise, reliable indicators
of specific health problems, while
others provide more general information
that gives doctors clues to your
possible health problems. Information
obtained from laboratory tests
may help doctors decide whether
other tests or procedures are
needed to make a diagnosis or
to develop or revise a previous
treatment plan. All laboratory
test results must be interpreted
within the context of your overall
health and should be used along
with other exams or tests. |
| What
factors affect your lab test results? |
|
Many factors can affect test
results, including:
- sex
- age
- race
- medical history
- general health
- specific foods
- drugs you are taking
- how closely your follow
preparatory instructions
- variations in laboratory
techniques
- variation from one laboratory
to another
|
