Dipstick urinalysis serves as a diagnostic test for doctors. The test, which involves placing a dipstick in a patient's urine sample, can indicate numerous medical conditions. The dipsticks can test for the presence of glucose, ketones,...
If a urine pregnancy test showed a positive result and later, a blood pregnancy test gave a negative result, there are several possible explanations. First, and most likely, the woman was pregnant and the pregnancy ended in early miscarriage. It...
Signs and symptoms of pregnancy can be baffling for some women. Home pregnancy tests are not always reliable, and their timing is tricky. Most women believe that once they are pregnant, they do not bleed until birth, but that is not always the...
Skin tests are frequently performed especially on health care workers to test for the presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The tuberculin skin test is administered by a health care professional who injects a substance called purified protein...
Casein is a milk protein present in cow's milk products and can be problematic if you have casein-milk protein allergy. This condition is often confused with lactose intolerance because they share some symptoms and both are triggered by dairy...
Thinking you are pregnant can be nerve-racking until you know for sure. Home pregnancy tests, like Rite Aid's First Response Early Pregnancy Test, are simple to use and give you a positive or negative result in just minutes. If you are trying to...
Many women turn to the e.p.t. Pregnancy test to find out if they are pregnant because this brand is so widely available in drugstores and supermarkets. Getting accurate results is crucial for many of these women. However, like any home pregnancy...
The time between the date of infection and when a test will produce a positive result is called the "window period." The testing method is one of the factors in determining what an individuals window period may be. The Human Immunodeficiency Virus...
An at-home pregnancy test is popular because it is relatively inexpensive, you can conduct it in the privacy of your own bathroom, and it's a quick way to know if you are pregnant without going to the doctor. The home tests are not always 100...
The most common initial screening test for HIV is the enzyme immunoassay or EIA, also known as ELISA. The test detects proteins the body makes in response to HIV. These proteins, called antibodies, are defensive molecules made by the B-cells of...
Both urine and blood pregnancy tests work by detecting human chorionic gonadotropin, or hCGm, levels. Blood tests can detect hCG earlier in pregnancy than urine tests. Blood tests can typically do this around the time of implantation, seven to...
Many organizations require drug testing for a myriad other reasons, whether job applicants or current employees. But there are problems with testing. For example, urine drug tests may yield false positives, meaning the person tests positive but is...
Pregnancy tests measure the hormone human chorionic gonadotropin, most commonly called hCG. HCG is produced when a fertilized egg implants in the uterus and appears in the blood and urine of pregnant women as early as 10 days after conception. It...
Nuclear stress tests are used to diagnose heart problems by producing images of the heart at rest and after exercise. A technician injects a nuclear isotope into the patient and takes images with a nuclear camera of the resting heart, reports the...
A beneficial nutrient and powerful antioxidant, vitamin C comes from a wide variety of food sources. Foods rich in vitamin C include bell peppers, broccoli, strawberries, lemons, kiwifruit, tomatoes and oranges. Although these foods are generally...
The diagnosis of celiac disease can sometimes be difficult. Celiac is also known as "the great imitator" because many of its symptoms can resemble those of numerous other health conditions. Some people will experience skin rashes, others may have...
The Pap test, or Pap smear, is a screening tool, not a diagnostic test, to examine cells collected from the cervix in order to detect any abnormalities including cancer cells, precancerous cells and non-carcinogenic conditions. The National Cancer...
Laboratories perform tests on blood samples and measure the results against accepted ranges. Results are used to diagnose illness, measure medication levels, help employers make hiring decisions and indicate the presence of drugs and alcohol for...
"Dementia" serves as an umbrella term for several different types of progressive cognitive and functional impairment found in older adults, including Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia and Parkinson's dementia. Clinicians determine a...
A gynecological exam alone is not enough to detect cervical cancer or precancerous cells. The cervix, which is the lower, narrower end of the uterus, is where your doctor collects cells for a Pap smear. If detected early, cervical cancer is one of...
When a woman believes she's pregnant, it is important to her to be able to trust the results of a pregnancy test. Unfortunately, many women see misleading advertisements that pregnancy tests are over 99 percent effective, which may make her trust...
There are two ways to perform a prenatal ultrasound. Technicians perform transvaginal ultrasounds by inserting a round wand into the vagina. This method is most common in the first trimester when the date of the mother's last menstrual period is...
An STD test, or sexually transmitted disease test, may be performed for one or more of the many diseases that can be contracted through contact with bodily fluids during sexual activity. There are many tests, each of which is specific for a...
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) published its findings on the efficacy of breast screening methods in reducing deaths from breast cancer in the Nov. 17, 2009, issue of "Annals of Internal Medicine." The task force reviewed eight...
When taking a home pregnancy test, questions often arise about the results of the test, regardless of whether they are positive or negative. One common question many women have is about the impact of birth control pills on the results of a...
During pregnancy, the body begins to produce the hormone HCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin. It is secreted by the placenta following implantation of the embryo in the uterine wall. An HCG test is used to confirm pregnancy and later on it may be...
Within alternative medicine, several products are advertised as naturopathic methods for "detoxifying" or cleansing the bloodstream. Although there is little to no scientific evidence supporting the use of these programs, they remain a popular...
