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All About Blood Tests
All About Blood Tests
Medically reviewed by Lauren Castiello, MS, AGNP-C — By Tim Jewell and Alina Sharon — Updated on March 8, 2023
Blood tests can be used to help a doctor identify a variety of health conditions, including vitamin
deficiencies, organ failure, HIV, cancer, diabetes, and more.
• Diabetes
• HIV
• Anemia
• Cancer
• Coronary Heart Disease
Even if a person does not have heart disease, a blood test can show whether they may be at risk of
developing the condition.
Other blood tests can indicate whether the medications you’re taking are working properly, or
assess how well your blood is clotting.
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Component Normal range
male: 4.3–5.9
red blood cells (cells responsible for carrying oxygen
million/mm3; female: 3.5–5.5
throughout the body)
million/mm3
Based on your results, your doctor will order follow-up tests to confirm abnormal levels and a
possible diagnosis.
• Calcium
• Glucose
• Sodium
• Potassium
• Bicarbonate
• Chloride
• Blood Urea Nitrogen (Bun)
• Creatinine
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This test may require you to fast for at least 8 hours before your blood is drawn, depending on the
instructions of your doctor and what the test is measuring.
• Kidney Disease
• Diabetes
• Hormone Imbalances
• Albumin
• Total Protein
• Alkaline Phosphatase (Alp), An Enzyme Mostly Found in The Bones and Liver That’s
Involved in Several Bodily Processes
• Alanine Aminotransferase (Alt), An Enzyme Found in The Liver
• Aspartate Aminotransferase (Ast), An Enzyme Found in The Liver and Other Tissues Within
the Body
• Bilirubin, Which Is Waste Resulting from The Breakdown of Red Blood Cells That the Liver
Filters Out
The same conclusions can be drawn from a CMP as from a BMP for the same substances that a BMP
covers. Other abnormal levels can also indicate underlying conditions, such as:
• cirrhosis
• hepatitis
ALT considered normal
• liver cancer
• liver damage
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• heart conditions
• hepatitis
• mononucleosis
• (mono)pancreatitis
4. Lipid panel
This test checks levels of two types of cholesterol:
HDL is “good” because it removes harmful substances from your blood and helps the liver break
them down into waste. LDL is “bad” because it can cause plaque to develop in your arteries,
increasing your risk of heart disease.
You may need to fast for at least 8 hours before this test.
High Low/Optimal
HDL >60 mg/dL male: <40 mg/dL; female: <50 mg/dL (low)
5. Thyroid panel
A thyroid panel, or thyroid function test, checks how well your thyroid is producing and reacting to
certain hormones, such as:
• Triiodothyronine (T3). Along with T4, this regulates your heart rate and body
temperature.
• Thyroxine (T4). Along with T3, this regulates your metabolism and how you grow.
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• Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH). This helps regulate the levels of hormones your
thyroid releases.
Your thyroid is a tiny gland in your neck. It helps regulate bodily functions like your mood, energy
level, and overall metabolism.
Abnormal levels of these hormones can indicate numerous conditions, such as:
6. Cardiac biomarkers
Enzymes are proteins that help your body accomplish certain chemical processes, such as breaking
down food and clotting blood. They’re used throughout your body for many vital functions.
• Creatine kinase (CK). This is an enzyme primarily located in the brain, heart, and skeletal
muscle. When muscle damage happens, CK seeps into the blood in growing amounts.
• Creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB). These enzymes are found in your heart. They often increase
in your blood after a heart attack or other heart injury.
• Troponin. This is a heart enzyme that can leak into your blood and results from heart
injury.
Here are the normal ranges for the enzyme listed above:
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7. Sexually transmitted infection tests
Many sexually transmitted infections (STIs) can be diagnosed using a blood sample. These tests are
often combined with urine samples or swabs of infected tissue for more accurate diagnoses.
• Chlamydia
• Gonorrhea
• Herpes
• HIV
• Syphilis
Blood tests aren’t always accurate right after contracting an infection. For an HIV infection, for
example, you may need to wait at least a month before a blood test can detect the virus.
8. Coagulation panel
Coagulation tests measure how well your blood clots and how long it takes for your blood to clot.
Examples include the prothrombin time (PT) test and fibrinogen activity test.
Clotting is a crucial process that helps you stop bleeding after a cut or wound. But a clot in a vein or
artery can be deadly since it can block blood flow to your brain, heart, or lungs. This can cause a
heart attack or stroke.
Coagulation test results vary based on your health and any underlying conditions that may affect
clotting.
• Leukemia
• Excessive Bleeding (Hemophilia)
• Thrombosis
• Liver Conditions
• Vitamin K Deficiency
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In men, DHEA helps develop traits like body hair growth, so low levels are considered abnormal. In
women, high levels can cause typically male traits, like excess body hair, to develop, so low levels
are normal.
• Addison’s disease
• Adrenal dysfunction
• Hypopituitarism
The higher the level, the higher the risk of heart disease:
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What are some routine tests and others I should ask about?
If you are showing concerning symptoms of any illness or long-term condition, visit your doctor for
a checkup. They will conduct a physical examination and let you know what kinds of blood tests
you’ll need to undergo.
If you want to request a routine blood test, the most common ones to consider are:
• Enzyme markers if you’re at risk of cancer or other conditions like cirrhosis, stroke, or
celiac disease
• Sexually transmitted infection (STI) tests if you recently had sex without a barrier method
or had sex with a new partner
How often you should get a physical exam may depend on your age, according to guidelines from a
variety of clinical organizations:
Your doctor will decide whether you need any blood tests during your physical exam.
In general, recommendations for at minimum a lipid test starting at age 20 and every 5 years after
that for people with a low risk of heart disease.
For people at a higher risk of heart disease, more frequent lipid testing may be necessary.
In addition, you should get a glucose blood test if your blood pressure is continuously above
135/80. People over age 50 should get a fecal occult blood test to screen for colorectal cancer
annually.
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But some doctors may still suggest routine blood work during your yearly physical exam, and in
some cases, you may want to get additional testing. For example, when:
• You’re experiencing unusual, persistent symptoms. These could include anything from
fatigue and abnormal weight gain to new pain.
• You want to optimize your health. Knowing levels of various blood components, such as
HDL and LDL cholesterol, can allow you to tweak your diet or fitness plan to maximize
healthy habits.
• You want to reduce your risk of disease or complications. Regular blood tests can catch
the warning signs of almost any disease early. Many heart, lung, and kidney conditions can
be diagnosed using blood tests.
Talk with your doctor first if you want to get certain tests done, or have them done more often than
once a year.
Your doctor typically orders blood tests for you during a physical, checkup, or an appointment
intended to screen for a specific condition.
It’s possible to order your own blood tests without a doctor through laboratories like LabCorp and
Quest Diagnostics, but health insurance may not cover these tests.
While such blood tests may more accessible and convenient, it may be harder to interpret the
results without a medical professional.
Some blood testing facilities may also not give you accurate results.
There are different locations that offer laboratory services that include blood work. Most hospitals
contain a laboratory that you can visit to get tests done. Some laboratories will have walk-in
options. Others may require an appointment.
• Private laboratories. Hospitals may use private labs to offload some testing from their
own laboratories, or in cases when a specialized test is needed. Often, health insurance
plans will require you to use a specific laboratory that is in their network for the test to be
covered.
• Point-of care. This describes situations when you may need to get a blood test wherever
you are receiving medical care. In routine scenarios, your doctor’s office during an
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appointment. It can also include tests done inside an ambulance during transport, or at a
cruise ship or military clinic, for example.
• Direct access testing. Also known as direct to consumer, it allows you to order your own
test without a doctor’s referral. You get the test done at a laboratory specially set up for this
purpose.
• Home testing. You can get some tests at a pharmacy and then do them at home. You may
need a prescription for some tests, while others may be available over the counter. This can
include things like blood glucose monitoring for people with diabetes, or the fecal occult
blood test that screens for colorectal cancer. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must
approve all home tests before they’re available for purchase.
Everything you eat and drink contains vitamins, proteins, and other nutrients that can cause the
related levels in your blood to temporarily spike or drop.
Fasting for 8 to 12 hours helps ensure that blood test results are free from these variables, making
your test results as accurate as possible.
• Cholesterol tests
• Blood sugar tests
• Liver function tests
• Kidney function tests
• Basic metabolic panel
• Glucose tests
Results may take anywhere from a few hours to a few days to become available. Here’s an overview
of how long some common tests may take:
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Timing can depend on the specific lab where you get tested, and how many tests you get done at
once. If you order multiple tests, you may not get the complete results until all of the tests are
completed.
Sometimes a lab will only release results to your doctor, who reviews them and then releases them
to you.
While every laboratory or test-providing company may structure their result reports differently,
they all must include the same components as mandated by federal legislation.
Some of that may be administrative content, such as the name of the person who did the blood test,
the date the test was done, and the name of the doctor who ordered the test.
When it comes to understanding the results, you can look for the following:
• Quantitative test result. Results will be typically written out numerically in cases when the
test measured the quantity of something. For example, if the test measured the amount of
cholesterol in your blood.
• Abnormal markers. Often, a laboratory report will include some kind of marker to let you
know if a result is outside the normal interval, and therefore abnormal. For example, you
may see the letter H to indicate high, the letter L to indicate low, or the acronym WNL for
“within normal limits.” You may see an asterisk and some additional comments in text if
your results come out as highly abnormal. In this case, you’ll typically get a call from your
doctor.
• Reference range. Every laboratory will have its own reference range for each type of test.
Typically, this reference range will be written in your laboratory report next to the
numerical value of your result so you are able to see where your result falls in the range.
A nurse or technician usually performs a blood test at a laboratory or in a doctor’s office. The
procedure takes just a few minutes.
1. Cleans the area on your arm where they’ll draw the blood from.
2. Ties a rubber band to your upper arm to help make your veins more visible, and asks you to
make a fist.
3. Puts a needle attached to a tube gently into a vein to draw blood.
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4. Removes the needle from the skin and takes the rubber band off your arm when the
collection is complete.
5. Covers the drawing site with a bandage or clean cotton and medical tape.
The risks of routine blood tests are very low but can include:
Takeaway
They’re also a good way to catch illness or disease early, and to see how well your body responds to
treatments for various conditions.
Many people get routine blood tests done at least once a year. Talk with your doctor to learn
whether there are any other tests you may need to ensure your optimal health.
Current Version
Mar 8, 2023
Written By
Tim Jewell, Alina Sharon
Edited By
Alina Sharon
Copy Edited By
Sara Giusti
Nov 16, 2021
Medically Reviewed By
Lauren Castiello, MS, AGNP-C
© 2023 Healthline Media LLC. All rights reserved. Our website services, content, and products are for informational
purposes only. Healthline Media does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. See additional information.
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