What Are Blood Tests And How Do They Work?

/ Uncategorized / By

By Yhordan Serpentini | February 22, 2023

In today’s blog, we will be discussing what blood tests are, as well as how they work. This includes a brief overview of the different types of blood tests, what they are used for, how your blood samples are analyzed, the lab equipment used to analyze them, and how to prepare for a blood test.

blood tests

What Are Blood Tests?

Blood tests are invasive tests conducted to measure or examine your cells, proteins, chemicals, sugar level, cholesterol levels, and other instances or substances, to get a basic understanding of your body’s health. During annual checkups or regular checkups, you will be typically asked to receive a blood test as a way for your healthcare provider to monitor your health and how well your body is functioning.

In order for a blood test to be performed, lab technicians (known as phlebotomists) will place samples of your blood into a machine called a Hematology analyzer, which is a highly specialized lab equipment that analyzes how your blood cells respond to light. Your blood sample may also be placed in a machine known as a Centrifuge, which spins the tube your blood is in at a very rapid pace, for several minutes, to separate your blood serum from your blood cells–allowing for analysis without interference from the cells. 

The data collected from both of these machines are then sent to your healthcare provider for further analysis since the information can be used to help your provider detect a large range of medical conditions.

What Are Blood Tests Used For?

As mentioned before, some of the reasons for blood tests are to examine your body’s basic functions to ensure that it is working properly; however, there are additional uses for blood tests that healthcare providers will usually look at, such as:

  • Diagnosing certain diseases, or determining if treatment for a disease is working
  • Monitoring chronic diseases (e.g. diabetes, HIV, certain STDs or STIs, high cholesterol, etc.)
  • Monitoring how well your organs are functioning (kidney, liver, and heart are the most monitored)
  • Determining how well your immune system is fighting infections, or if it is having trouble
  • Diagnosing internal bleeding or clotting

Types of Blood Tests

There are multiple ways blood tests can be performed, though the two you are likely to be most familiar with are through either a prick on the finger or a venipuncture, which is when your arm’s vein is punctured. Other ways blood tests can be performed are through the heel, known as a heel stick test, though this is typically conducted on infants or newborns, and through an artery puncture, known as an arterial blood test. 

The way a blood test is performed is based on the type of test that is needed to be conducted, as some may require fewer or larger doses of blood. Below is a list of the most common types of blood tests:

  • Basic Metabolic Panel
  • Complete Blood Count (CBC)
  • Blood Clotting (Coagulation) Test
  • Blood Enzyme Test
  • Cholesterol & Triglyceride Test (blood test for heart disease)
  • Blood Culture
  • Blood Gases
  • Blood Glucose
  • C-Reactive Protein (CRP)
  • Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR)
  • Electrolyte Test
  • Blood Typing

How To Prepare For A Blood Test

In most occasions, the best way to prepare for a blood test is through a small fasting period (roughly 6-12 hours) prior to your test, so that way any foods or beverages consumed won’t interfere with the accuracy of the test’s data. For example, drinking soda, alcohol, coffee, or juices shortly prior to your blood test can affect blood sugar and fat levels, as well as the speed of digestion–which will ruin the accuracy of your test.

Need a fast and reliable blood test? Visit our Lab Tests page to see all of our available options to book an appointment with us. All results are typically within two hours of onsite testing!

Disclaimer: This blog is not intended to be medical advice

References:

Rapid Bio Blogs:

Scroll to Top