Failing Blood tests?

[Marvel]

Whats happens when you fail  blood tests?


Also I would really appreciate it if someone would give me a rundown of what is involved in a blood test, what things do they test for?

[Anna++]

Whats happens when you fail  blood tests?

You have to repeat second grade!   

Also I would really appreciate it if someone would give me a rundown of what is involved in a blood test, what things do they test for?

I'm not actually sure it's possible to fail a blood test.  Usually the just measure how concentrated different chemicals are in the samples they take so they know what your levels are at.  Then they compare your readings to some standard "healthy person".

[Jennygirl]

Yeah you probably don't fail the blood test, but instead the blood test might reveal some problems which prevent a doctor from doing certain things. Like, if a blood test reveals that some levels are out of whack you might not be able to start HRT or something.

[Marvel]

You have to repeat second grade!   

LOL

Thanks for replies. I'm kind or worried right now about my blood pressure, coz last time I went to a dentist years ago he said it was high, for some reason. I may also be worried about my cholesterol being high, lack of exercise. I'm young early 20s but somehow might fail blood test and not get hormones . Howfully Im wrong and it all goes well

[dreaming.forever]

Your blood pressure might not necessarily be high. I know I get nervous at the dentist's office, so if you're the same way, might've just been nerves. I'd suggest you start right now to do what you can to improve your health (start exercising, eat healthier foods if you aren't already doing that, quit smoking/drinking if you do that); if your doctor says your blood pressure is too high for hormones, you can probably set up a plan with him or her to lower it to a more acceptable level and then get hormones. If you can't lower your blood pressure naturally (by living more healthily), for whatever reason, you might want to ask about getting medication to lower your blood pressure.

Another thing is it might not be something to worry about at all. You might be fine. So don't worry too much; if your blood pressure is too high, you can take steps to lower it, and if it's fine, then there's nothing to worry about in the first place Good luck.

[Beth Andrea]

A blood test isn't a "pass/fail" kind of thing. It's used to monitor various enzymes, hormones, and blood cells in the body. Ideally, one should have a "baseline" blood test done, to see what things looked like before taking medication (including HRT) that may affect these things.

A doctor will use the results (taken periodically during the time medication is taken) in order to modify the dose level(s) of the medication. Ideally, s/he will begin at the lowest dose available, then if you tolerate that well, the dose will be slowly increased to the desired level, checking the blood results after each increase.

If something appears like it's going out of whack, the doctor will ask you if anything has changed (stress, diet, "taking meds on the side", etc) and will decide how to respond to the changes in the blood (increasing the dose, decreasing, or keeping it the same).

Hope this helps.

[Alainaluvsu]

Beth summed it up well. I'll add, the doctor tests for a variety of things on HRT. The upside to taking HRT is knowing how healthy your body is pretty much performing as a whole, since every month they're (competent doctors) are checking for many things. My doctor tests for:

Total Testosterone, Estradiol, Prolactin: for obvious reasons.

Complete Blood Count: A breakdown of how many blood cells (white and red) are in your body, what's in them, how healthy they are, etc. If you have abnormal levels of this, it indicates not only a general unhealthiness, but can possibly mean you are at risk of clots or strokes

Comprehensive Metabolic Panel: A breakdown of different minerals and enzymes in your body that measures how well your liver, kidney, and digestive system are functioning. The breakdown measures such things as chloride, potassium, protein, calcium and sodium in your serum, how much CO2 is in your blood, and other enzymes which are only produced in large amounts if your liver has a problem.

Lipid Panel: Measures your cholesterol and triglycerides which tries to determine if you are at risk for clots.

Like I said, you get a pretty good health screen. Since you are getting it done every 3 months, chances are if anything bad develops towards your health that they'll catch it in the beginning stages. That's the good thing about not self medicating.

[Jamie D]

LOL

Thanks for replies. I'm kind or worried right now about my blood pressure, coz last time I went to a dentist years ago he said it was high, for some reason. I may also be worried about my cholesterol being high, lack of exercise. I'm young early 20s but somehow might fail blood test and not get hormones . Hopefully Im wrong and it all goes well

Blood pressure and cholesterol can be controlled.  Probably the biggest worry would be if you have existing liver damage.  And they would likely look at kidney function too.  The blood tests check for things like levels of proteins, enzymes, albumin, blood chemistry.

That you are young is a good thing.  As long as you are not a drug abuser, alcoholic, share needles, or do other high risk activities, you will likely be okay.

And one more thing - a good doctor will establish a "baseline" of measurements against which to gauge your progress on hrt.