Re: Re: Labs to request

[Guest guest]

I am not a scientist, but simply pointed out that these are some of the

usual tests run for people who are low thyroid, myself included, and

according to everything I've seen from different patients on these thyroid

boards and in all the thousands of pages of reading I've done. Setting up

charts, etc....would not be my forte. Also, I can't speak to the issue of

different labs. My experience has been good with two different labs I've

had my blood draws at, so I can't talk about this one, and I don't really

know the reputations of these. With your particular problem, I'm assuming

that you're talking about the urine methylmalonic acid test for B12, which

I've only read about and have no experience with. I've seen people have the

RBC Folate (for Folic Acid) run alongside that one for inflammation that CAN

indicate low folate, but, other than that, I don't know.

Re: Labs to request

> ,

>

> Would it be possible to add a file to the " Files " that summarizes

> the recommended tests and why those tests should be done? It took me

> forever to piece all this together, especially things like the

> ferritin and B12 and folate. In particular, I did not learn until

> about a year ago that many docs just look at MCV and if you're in

> range don't consider ANY of those tests, which is wrong since they

> can both be out of whack thus normalizing the MCV, since iron

> deficiency anemia results in low MCV and B12 (pernicious anemia)

> results in an elevated MCV). Also, I know that the blood tests are

> not always accurate. For example, my folate was exceptionally high,

> but that was because I have that MTHFR heterozygous defect thus my

> methylation cycle is not effective because I don't have the

> necessary enzymes to process the B12 and folate,which is why I need

> to take SAM-E and why I have low levels of some really important

> hormones like melatonin and serotonin. I realize that the average

> patient does not need to understand this, but it's important for

> folks to know whether this is a problem for them. However, some docs

> won't run that MTHFR test because there can be issues with insurance

> companies if you are homozygous for that defect - those are the

> folks that are at risk for early heart problems (i.e., the ones that

> are hit in their late 30's/early 40s). Also, here's decent right up

> of what I'm talking about:

> http://www.enzymestuff.com/methylation.htm

>

> I think this sort of information in a concise form (i.e., I likely

> wouldn't be the best author would be extremely useful for most

> folks. In addition, a flow diagram of the order in which things

> should be considered would also be useful, in particular given that

> very few doctors (especially those that take insurance) like to run

> alot of tests at a patient's request, thus I have had more success

> in sneaking in a few of these at a time, recognizing of course, that

> a snap shot at a single time is more valuable, which leads to my

> next question.

>

> Also, if folks have lab preferences, maybe we could include that,

> which brings me to a general question. Do folks consider the labs

> such as Quest and Labcorp consistent in their results - for example,

> if you used both labs on the same day, would your results be in

> similar percentiles in terms of being in range? From experience I

> know that this is absolutely not true for saliva versus blood tests,

> but I guess my question is whether there is standard procedure and

> does any know if the tests are automated or how much human

> intervention is involved?

>

> Thanks,

> B.