Blood Tests
Rationale and Instructions
Blood tests are a central component of modern preventive healthcare and are commonly used alongside routine physical examinations. They provide objective, quantitative insights into a wide range of physiological processes, helping healthcare professionals assess overall health, identify disease risk, and monitor ongoing medical conditions. Through the measurement of biomarkers, blood tests support early disease detection, guide clinical decision-making, and enable more personalized approaches to medical care.
When used appropriately, blood tests can reveal early signs of metabolic disorders, cardiovascular disease, inflammation, nutritional deficiencies, hormonal imbalances, and organ dysfunction—often before symptoms develop. They also play a critical role in monitoring chronic conditions and evaluating response to treatment over time.
However, blood testing is not without limitations. Potential disadvantages include false-positive or false-negative results, the invasive nature of blood draws, cost and access barriers, and the risk of overdiagnosis or unnecessary treatment (1,2). For these reasons, blood tests should not be ordered indiscriminately. Instead, their use should be guided by clinical context, evidence-based guidelines, and individual risk factors.
In preventive care, blood testing represents a double-edged tool: highly informative when used thoughtfully, but potentially misleading when applied without clear medical rationale. Striking the right balance between benefit and harm is essential for optimizing patient outcomes and avoiding unnecessary interventions.
The decision to include blood tests as part of a routine physical examination should always involve a shared discussion between the individual and their primary care provider. Together, they can determine which tests are appropriate based on age, medical history, symptoms, family history, and personal health goals.
References
- Carr, T. (2019). Pros and Cons of 18 Medical Tests. Consumer Reports
- Pros and Cons of Blood Testing. Health Research Funding
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Scoring based on most recent data provided by your attending
physician or medical technology laboratories |
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For all items below score 0 if within normal range, or if test
is irrelevant to age group, otherwise 1. |
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Analyte |
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Glucose |
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Urea Nitrogen (BUN) |
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Creatinine |
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EGFR |
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BUN/Creatinine ratio |
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Sodium |
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Potassium |
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Chloride |
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Carbon dioxide |
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Calcium |
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Protein total |
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Albumin |
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Globulin |
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Albumin/Globulin ratio |
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Bilirubin. Total |
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Alkaline phosphatase |
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AST |
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ALT |
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For all items below score 0 if within normal range, or if test
is irrelevant to age group, otherwise 1. |
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Analyte |
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Cholesterol, total |
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HDL cholesterol |
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Triglycerides |
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LDL cholesterol |
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Cholesterol/HDL ratio |
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Non-HDL cholesterol |
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Vitamin D |
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Vitamin B12 |
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Vitamin B6 |
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Folic acid |
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Magnesium |
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Zinc |
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Selenium |
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For all items below score 0 if within normal range, or if test
is irrelevant to age group, otherwise 1. |
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Analyte |
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White blood cell count |
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Red blood cell count |
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Hemoglobin |
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Hematocrit |
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Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) |
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Mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) |
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Mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) |
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Red cell distribution width (RDW) |
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Platelet count |
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Mean platelet volume (MPV) |
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Absolute neutrophils |
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Absolute lymphocytes |
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Absolute monocytes |
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Absolute eosinophils |
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Absolute basophils |
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Neutrophils |
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Lymphocytes |
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Monocytes |
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Eosinophils |
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Basophils |
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Total score |
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Reminder: Accumulated
score of zero requires no further action. The user is encouraged to discuss
with a healthcare provider any line items scored as 1 and proceed with remedial
actions as appropriate. Save or print the table. All forms will reset to blank
state once the user exits the website.
"Prevention is better than
cure" Desiderius Erasmus