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During a physical examination, a health care provider studies a patient's body to determine the presence or absence of physical problems. A typical physical examination includes: Inspection (looking at the body; Palpation (feeling the body with ha...
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The health status of populations and of individuals is assessed for many reasons. Assessing needs for care helps guide the allocation of resources— diagnostic assessments guide treatment, prognostic assessments contribute to planning, and assessin...
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Prothrombin time (PT) is a blood test that measures the time it takes for the liquid portion (plasma) of your blood to clot. See also: Partial thromboplastin time (PTT)
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The prothrombin time test belongs to a group of blood tests that assess the clotting ability of blood. The test is also known as the pro time or PT test.
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Hemostasis has been described as "a process by which the body spontaneously stops bleeding and maintains blood in the fluid state within the vascular compartment." There are at least four major systems that are involved in this complex process: th...
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Partial thromboplastin time (PTT) is a blood test that looks at how long it takes for blood to clot. It can help tell if you have bleeding or clotting problems.
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The partial thromboplastin time (PTT) test is a blood test that is done to investigate bleeding disorders and to monitor patients taking an anticlotting drug (heparin).
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Electrolytes are positively and negatively charged molecules, called ions, that are found within cells, between cells, in the bloodstream, and in other fluids throughout the body. Electrolytes with a positive charge include sodium, potassium, calc...
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Electrolytes are positively or negatively charged particles that readily dissolve in water. The predominant positively charged electrolytes in the body are sodium, potassium, calcium , and magnesium, while negatively charged electrolytes include c...
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Electrolytes are positively and negatively charged molecules called ions, that are found within the body's cells and extracellular fluids, including blood plasma. A test for electrolytes includes the measurement of sodium, potassium, chloride, and...
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Electrolytes are positively and negatively charged ions that are found within the cells and extracellular fluids, including blood plasma. A test for electrolytes includes the measurement of sodium, potassium, chloride, and bicarbonate. These ions ...
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Fibrin degradation products (FDPs) are the substances left behind when clots dissolve in the blood. This article discusses the blood test to measure these products.
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When injury occurs to a blood vessel wall, thrombin (a coagulation enzyme) is formed in the first stage of a complicated series of steps called the coagulation cascade. In the second phase, fibrinogen, a coagulation protein made by the liver , is ...
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BUN stands for blood urea nitrogen. Urea nitrogen is what forms when protein breaks down. A test can be done to measure the amount of urea nitrogen in the blood.
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The blood urea nitrogen (BUN) test measures the level of urea nitrogen in a sample of the patient's blood. Urea is a substance that is formed in the liver when the body breaks down protein. Urea then circulates in the blood in the form of urea nit...
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A blood smear is a blood test that gives information about the number and shape of blood cells.
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Blood typing is a laboratory test done to determine a person's blood type. If the person needs a blood transfusion , another test called crossmatching is done after the blood is typed to find blood from a donor that the person's body will accept.
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The process of transferring whole blood or blood components from one person (donor) to another (recipient).
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Transfusion therapy refers to the process of administering whole blood or blood components to a patient through an intravenous (IV) needle or catheter placed in a patient's vein. Blood and blood products may be autologous (comprised of the patient...
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A chest x-ray is an x-ray of the chest, lungs, heart, large arteries, ribs, and diaphragm.
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A chest x ray is a procedure used to evaluate organs and structures within the chest for symptoms of disease. Chest x rays include views of the lungs, heart, small portions of the gastrointestinal tract, thyroid gland and the bones of the chest ar...
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A chest x ray is a procedure used to evaluate organs and structures within the chest for symptoms of disease. Chest x rays include views of the lungs, heart, small portions of the gastrointestinal tract, thyroid gland, and the bones of the chest a...
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A chest x ray is a procedure used to evaluate organs and structures within the chest for symptoms of disease. Chest x rays include views of the lungs , heart , small portions of the gastrointestinal tract, and the bones of the chest area. X rays a...
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Fibrinogen is a protein produced by the liver. This protein helps stop bleeding by helping blood clots to form. A blood test can be done to tell how much fibrinogen you have in the blood.
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Fibrinogen (Factor I) is a protein that originates in the liver. It is converted to fibrin during the blood-clotting process (coagulation).
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Creatine phosphokinase (CPK) is an enzyme found mainly in the heart, brain, and skeletal muscle. This article discusses the test to measure the amount of CPK in the blood. See also: CPK isoenzymes
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The creatine kinase test measures the blood levels of certain muscle and brain enzyme proteins.
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Urinalysis is the physical, chemical, and microscopic examination of urine. It involves a number of tests to detect and measure various compounds that pass through the urine.
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Urinalysis is a diagnostic physical, chemical, and microscopic examination of a urine sample (specimen). Specimens can be obtained by normal emptying of the bladder (voiding) or by a hospital procedure called catheterization.
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A urinalysis is a group of manual and/or automated qualitative and semi-quantitative tests performed on a urine sample. A routine urinalysis usually includes the following tests: color, transparency, specific gravity, pH, protein, glucose, ketones...
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The urine specimen collection is a procedure used to obtain a sample of urine from a patient for diagnostic tests.
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A urinalysis is a group of manual and/or automated qualitative and semi-quantitative tests performed on a urine sample. A routine urinalysis usually includes the following tests: color, transparency, specific gravity, pH, protein, glucose, ketones...
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Urine typically contains epithelial cells shed from the urinary tract. Urine cytology evaluates this urinary sediment for the presence of cancerous cells from the lining of the urinary tract, and it is a convenient noninvasive technique for follow...
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Urinalysis is an important test used in diagnosing diseases of the genitourinary tract. Urine is examined for pH and specific gravity by chemical and direct microscopic methods. The presence and concentration of various chemicals such as proteins,...
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A urine dipstick is a colorimetric chemical assay that can be used to determine the pH, specific gravity, protein, glucose, ketone, bilirubin, urobilinogen, blood, leukocyte, and nitrite levels of an individual's urine. It consists of a reagent st...
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A complete blood count (CBC) test measures the following: The number of red blood cells (RBCs; The number of white blood cells (WBCs; The total amount of hemoglobin in the blood; The fraction of the blood composed of red blood cells (hematocrit; T...
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One of the most commonly ordered clinical laboratory tests, a blood count, also called a complete blood count (CBC), is a basic evaluation of the cells (red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets) suspended in the liquid part of the blood (...
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A complete blood count (CBC) is a series of tests used to evaluate the composition and concentration of the cellular components of blood. It consists of the following tests: red blood cell (RBC) count, white blood cell (WBC) count, and platelet co...
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A complete blood count (CBC) is a series of tests used to evaluate the composition and concentration of the cellular components of blood. It consists of the following tests: red blood cell (RBC) count, white blood cell (WBC) count, and platelet co...
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The clinical laboratory test that evaluates the three main cellular components of peripheral blood (red cells, white cells, and platelets) is called the "complete blood count" (CBC). It is used commonly to assess whether a patient is anemic (low r...
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Pulmonary function tests are a group of tests that measure how well the lungs take in and release air and how well they move gases such as oxygen from the atmosphere into the body's circulation.
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Pulmonary function tests are a group of procedures that measure the function of the lungs, revealing problems in the way a patient breathes. The tests can determine the cause of shortness of breath and may help confirm lung diseases, such as asthm...
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Pulmonary function tests are a group of procedures that measure the function of the lungs , revealing problems in the way a patient breathes. These tests can determine the cause of shortness of breath and may help confirm the diagnosis of such lun...
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Pulmonary function tests are a group of procedures that measure how well the lungs are functioning.
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Normal individuals have a large reserve in lung function that allows breathing capacity to increase at least twenty to thirty times during periods of vigorous physical activity. It is not the ability to breathe that normally limits maximum exercis...
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An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a test that records the electrical activity of the heart. See also: Holter monitoring; Stress test.
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Electrocardiography is a commonly used, noninvasive procedure for recording electrical changes in the heart. The record, which is called an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), shows the series of waves that relate to the electrical impulses that occur...
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The electrocardiography unit, also called an electrocardiograph, is an apparatus that indirectly measures the heart's electrical activity and records it as a graphic tracing.
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The electrocardiogram (ECG) displays important information about the heart, including the occurrence of a heart attack or lack of oxygen, whether conduction of the heartbeat is disturbed, or its rate or rhythm altered. It is useful as a rapid indi...
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Blood gases is a measurement of how much oxygen and carbon dioxide is in your blood. It also determines the acidity (pH) of your blood.
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Blood gas analysis, also called arterial blood gas (ABG) analysis, is a procedure to measure the partial pressure of oxygen (O 2 ) and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) gases and the pH (hydrogen ion concentration) in arterial blood.
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Blood gas analysis, also called arterial blood gas (ABG) analysis, is a test which measures the amounts of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood, as well as the acidity (pH) of the blood.
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Blood gases are defined as the mixture of gases, including oxygen (O 2 ), carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), and nitrogen (N 2 ), dissolved in the fluid fraction of blood.
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The basic metabolic panel is a group of blood tests that provides information about your body's metabolism. See also: Blood chemistry; Comprehensive metabolic panel.
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