Understand your lab tests.

Counts and characterises red cells, white cells, and platelets. The most ordered blood test in the world.

The oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells. Low values indicate anemia — common in Indian women and adolescents.

Blood-clotting cells. Low counts raise bleeding risk; high counts raise clotting risk. Dengue-fever monitoring relies on this.

A non-specific marker of inflammation. Elevated in infections, autoimmune disease, and many other conditions.

A microscopic look at blood cells. Confirms what counts suggest about red cells, white cells, and platelets.

A 3-month snapshot of average blood sugar. Used to manage diabetes — even when day-to-day glucose varies.

Blood sugar measured after 8+ hours of fasting. The classic screening test for diabetes.

Blood sugar measured 2 hours after a meal. Catches diabetes that fasting alone can miss.

The reference test for gestational diabetes and tricky borderline cases. Measures sugar response to a glucose load.

Combined with fasting glucose, this is the basis of insulin-resistance scores like HOMA-IR.

The first thyroid test most doctors order. High TSH usually points to an underactive thyroid; low TSH the other way.

The active thyroid hormone. Helpful when TSH is abnormal but T4 looks normal.

The main hormone the thyroid releases. Free T4 is usually the form doctors care about.

Confirms autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) when TSH is elevated and a cause is being sought.

Two enzymes that rise when liver cells are stressed. The first liver function indicators doctors look at.

A pigment from broken-down red cells. Elevated values can signal liver or bile-duct issues.

A liver-and-bone enzyme. Elevated in bile-duct or bone conditions; interpretation depends on context.

The main protein the liver makes. Low values reflect liver disease, malnutrition, or kidney loss.

A sensitive marker of bile-duct issues and alcohol-related liver injury.

A waste product filtered by the kidneys. The most common marker of kidney function.

A nitrogen waste product the kidneys filter. Used alongside creatinine to gauge kidney function.

Elevated in gout, kidney disease, and metabolic syndrome. Diet and certain medications shift it.

Calculated from creatinine, age, and sex. The number doctors use to stage kidney disease.

Checks for protein, glucose, blood, ketones, and infection. The most common urine test ordered in India.

Four cholesterol values that together tell the cardiovascular-risk story doctors care about most.

The sum of all cholesterol in blood. A starting point — ratios and LDL matter more than the total alone.

A fine-grained inflammation marker linked to cardiovascular risk when measured outside of acute illness.

Elevated levels are associated with B-vitamin deficiency and cardiovascular risk.

Widely deficient in Indian adults. The test tells you whether to supplement, and how much.

Essential for nerves and red cell production. Deficiency is common in Indian vegetarians.

Essential for DNA synthesis and red cell production. Deficiency causes a specific type of anemia.

The iron panel checks both circulating iron and how much the blood can carry. Read alongside ferritin.

The most useful single test of iron stores. Low ferritin signals depleted iron even when hemoglobin is normal.

Essential for bones, nerves, and muscles. Total and ionised calcium reveal different problems.

Often deficient in Indian diets. Plays a role in muscle, nerve, and heart-rhythm function.

Regulates fluid balance. Both high and low values can be dangerous and reflect distinct causes.

Critical for heart rhythm. Diuretics and kidney issues are common reasons it goes out of range.

Male and female levels both matter, but the reference ranges and interpretation differ widely.

The stress hormone. Used to investigate fatigue, weight changes, and suspected adrenal disorders.

Elevated levels can affect periods, fertility, and lactation. Investigated when those symptoms appear.