Diagnostics Flashcards
What is the overall % of clinical decisions that involve results from laboratory medicine?
70%
What is the inpatient % of clinical decisions that involve results from laboratory medicine?
98%
What is the emergency medicine % of clinical decisions that involve results from laboratory medicine?
56%
What is the outpatient populaiton % of clinical decisions that involve results from laboratory medicine?
29%
What are some specialties that require lab testing?
Clinical biochemistry
Immunology
Microbiology
Haematology
Histopathology
Genetics
What are some reasons tests are needed?
Screening
Diagnosis
Monitoring
Prognosis
What are examples of screening tests?
Neonatal PKU screening
Cervical smear for cervical cancer
What are examples of diagnostic tests?
Lung cancer biopsy
Measurement of urea and creatinine for renal failure
What are some examples of monitoring tests?
Measurement CRP to see if infection is improving
Measuring CD4 and viral load for HIV monitoring
What are some examples of prognosis tests?
Tumour biomarkers
What are issues that can occur with lab tests?
Incomplete request
Delayed transit with unspun units
Sample not collected onto system
Interference with analyser
Issues with quality control
Issues with results not being seen in time or being incorrectly interpreted
What is POCT?
Point of care technology
Who is POCT carried out by?
Non-lab healthcare professionals,
What are examples of POCT?
Blood gases
Urine dip sticks
Urine analysis
Blood glucose
Benefits of POCT
Improve turnaround time
Better for monitoring certain conditions
Smaller sample volumes
Clinically less invasive
