Answers About the Value of Blood Tests

Answers About the Value of Blood Tests

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QUESTION: I know that blood tests form an important tool for doctors to use
to help make diagnoses. Still it is hard to understand why at each visit,
there are either new tests to take, or old tests to repeat. With each test
costing more than I make in an hour, I need some answers about their value.
Please explain.
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ANSWER: There are several good reasons for a doctor to take blood samples for
testing, even when they seem to come too frequently and too often. In the
initial stages of evaluation, when the diagnosis is still uncertain, it may
take several tests before one shows any evidence of a disease. When results
are normal, a test is classified as "negative", and while negatives are signs
that little is wrong, they don't help too much in establishing just what is
wrong. There are many diagnostic blood tests available today, and it would be
foolish to test for everything at once, so most physicians proceed in a manner
that will provide the quickest answers at the least cost to the patient. They
test first for the most probable cause, and then proceed to lesser diseases
that can provoke the symptoms and complaints you presented when you arrived at
the office. Once the diagnosis is obtained, treatment is started, and the
effects of the treatment can be followed by testing the blood regularly. The
first abnormal results (they are called "positive") soon begin to return to
normal as the treatment takes effect. This is particularly important in
diseases such as diabetes, anemia and kidney ailments. I don't know the
reason for each test in your case, but it is most important that you find out
the purpose for these examinations from your physician, and become well
informed about your condition, its causes and its treatment, and satisfy
yourself that the tests are truly needed. You may then learn that your money
was well spent.