Because of the substances in blood, blood tests can be used for a wide variety of things, such as assessing organs and checking for infections. Genetic screening for conditions, such as cystic fibrosis can be done with a blood test as well, as the blood is a source of DNA.
Full Blood Count
These are the most common type of blood test and while they cannot normally give a diagnosis on their own, they are useful in testing for certain conditions, a few of which are listed below:
- A low red blood cell count may be due to anaemia (iron deficiency)
- A high red blood cell count can indicate problems with the lung or kidney.
- A low white blood cell count can indicate problems with the bone marrow, such as leukaemia.
- A high white blood cell count can indicate some sort of infection in the body, as white blood cells are part of the immune response and so deal with infections.
These are mainly used for Diabetes to check the sugar levels of a patient. There are kits that can be used at home to check glucose levels say, before and after a meal, to ensure they are the right sort of values, so as to minimise the risk of any harm being caused due to hyper or hypoglycemia. Through my work with Mencap, I've been privileged enough to see this type of blood test multiple times. It involves taking a tiny pinprick of blood from the finger.
Gene Test
Samples of DNA can be assessed to look for gene mutations that cause conditions, such as haemophilia, where the blood doesn't clot properly and cystic fibrosis, where mucus is secreted into the lungs.
Chromosome Test
This is used when a professional suspects genetics may have caused an abnormality, but are unsure of which gene is involved. In a chromosome test, the professional can examine the chromosomes directly. By looking at the number of chromosomes (there should be 23 pairs) and their shape, it may be possible to detect the genetic abnormality causing the condition. For example, if you looked at the cells of someone with Down's Syndrome, instead of a pair of Chromosome 21s, you would find 3 (hence Trisomy 21). Chromosome testing is often used where patients (often children) have developmental problems with no apparent cause.
Genetic Screening
This is used when no symptoms are present, but is to check for the possibility of conditions, such as the screening during pregnancy for Down's Syndrome and sickle cell anaemia. Huntington's disease is a genetic disorder that often reveals itself in later life. If a family member has developed Huntington's, you may wish to find out if there's a risk of you developing the disease.
There's so much to look into in blood tests, and these are just a few. I hope to look into this further soon and maybe even into Blood Groups etc, but for now I think I'm going to call it a night! Too much revision and research is making my brain go numb!
In other news, I've recently done 1:1 caring for a client with Angelman's Syndrome. This involved me being paired with him in a club nearby. His parents drove us in the car and speaking to them and seeing the client at home showed me a new side of living with learning disabilities that I had not seen before. Speaking to his parents about the activities he likes, how he often communicates and how his condition was first diagnosed (what was initially thought of as febrile convulsions turned out to be Epilepsy and Angelman Syndrome) on his first birthday made me think about coping with conditions in a home setting, rather than just a work. It also made me think more about the cuts to the public sector, and services that many people locally use, such as Mencap.
No comments:
Post a Comment