Do It Yourself Medical Tests: The Real Story Essay

In the past decade or so, the advancement of technology has resulted in the boom of gadgets such as cellular phones, handheld computers, flat screen television sets and the manage. However, this progression is non totally evident in entertainment and specifyation devices. In fact, these vast proficient developments assimilate believe in addition do an impact in the field of treat and wellnessc ar. Through the years, the introduction and use of highly sophisticated equipment has profoundly ameliorate the diagnosis and interposition of diseases, such as understructurecer.Most of the time, doctors merely have to evaluate their persevering ofs and make them undergo a series of machine- ground samples to further distinguish the disease or complications. However, to a greater extent than hospital-based technology, the introduction devices or kits have make it possible for patients to undergo medical examines in the thingumabob of their own scales. Before, a woman who comicals that she is pregnant had to visit her physician, give him a weewee consume and wait for days for the results of the pregnancy tests. Possibly, the solo test that could be make at nucleotide back then was chairing your temperature using a thermometer.Now, however, dim-witted tests like pregnancy tests and decline sugar tests for diabetes so-and-so be bought oer the counter, which means that patients no longer have to see their doctor often propagation just to undergo these tests. According to the Detroit Medical circle rounds online article, homemade Medical Testing Makes Inroads, other homemade test kits that have been made available for the past years include tests for hepatitis, cholesterin, colon cancer, urinary folder infections and HIV.Impact and Cost of Do-It-yourself KitsBased on the Detroit Medical Centers journal, do-it-yourself medical test kits have made a significant impact on patients lives, in particular, the f atomic number 18 of time they mak e it visiting their doctors and the length of availability of the test results. For example, in the past, diabetic patients had to check whether or not there was sugar in their urine to reminder their smear glucose. However, the introduction of testing strips and blood line glucose meters, which were usually strapped to a patients wrist, made that procedure archaic and countenanced greater convenience to diabetic patients.The patients can developedly measure the changes in their blood sugar with egress checking their urine and adjust their food intake and medication according to the results of the blood glucose meter. Moreover, based on the article, these meters can monitor blood glucose levels up to six times an hour, decreasing the need to use painful finger pricks, which is one causation why patients hesitate to undergo the test out front. In addition, the development of fine lancets and improved meters used for pricking require less of the patients blood. Another home te st kit that is currently available and commonly used at home is the cholesterol monitoring tests.While this test does not provide an amount of all the cholesterol fractions such as the good cholesterol and the bad cholesterol, it gives a patient a more or less simple overview of his or her cholesterol count. Similarly, home-test kits such as tests for ovulation, fecal undercover blood, colon cancer, hepatitis, urinary tract infections, HIV as well as blood pressure monitoring machines, have provided patients with the convenience of diagnosing themselves at home. However, man the do-it-yourself home test kit is a significant addition to society, it also comes with a high price.Based on Walton Crockers article, Dos and Donts for homemade Home Medical Testing, which was publish in the Associated Contents website, home medical test kits like cholesterol tests, prostate cancer tests, drug tests, HIV tests, hepatitis C tests, test for blood in the stool, and home monitoring mach ines, such as blood pressure monitoring machines, have a combined cost of more or less $6. 2 billion a year. Moreover, home blood glucose monitoring alone costs closely $5. 7 billion a year. The original blood glucose monitoring machine was enormous in coat and had to be strapped to a persons back.Now, in contrast, this machine is only the size of a key chain. In comparison, a patient spends ab issue $75 to $150 dollars on a regular visit to his or her doctor. However, more often than not, a citeation with the doctor regarding a true disease also includes a large amount of time worn out(p) and possible inconveniences as compared to using home test kits which similarly provide diagnosis of a disease. Furthermore, do-it-yourself patrimonial testing kits have also been developed. Patients use the kits to scrape cells from the inside cheeks and send it for testing. The results are released through e-mail.Risks and Issues of Do-It-Yourself Tests While modern society has warmly welc omed these vast developments in health and diagnosing certain diseases, there have been a lot of questions regarding their true statement and reliability. For example, the results of the home testing for blood cholesterol levels only gives patients the over-all amount of cholesterol and not the exact breakdown. According to the Detroit Medical Center, tests cholesterol levels should at least include High dumbness Lipoprotein, the good cholesterol and Low Density Lipoprotein, the bad cholesterol.Usually, the area of cite in this test is the exact amount of bad cholesterol as it more or less determines how ulcerous a patient is and what dietary adjustments a patient should make to lead his or her cholesterol levels. Do-it-yourself transmittable testing also has study flaws especially in the validation of results. Based on a breed cited by Dr. Andrew Weil in his website, a congressional investigation found out that certain firms who are selling home genetic testing kits were pr oduced clinically invalid results.These results, if not checked, can lead to false assumptions of a patient regarding his or her suspected disease. For example, a false positive result of a home genetic test which shows that a woman has a genetic mutation that can lead to breast cancer can make her feel overly worried in time though she the results are not factual. On the other hand, a false ostracize home genetic test result may cause a patient to curve a potential disease he or she has contracted since he or she believed the test results which are, in fact, invalid.However, despite these issues and controversies however, both the demand and popularity of home test kits are significantly growing. One reason for this popularity, according to Walton Crockers article, is that these home test kits provide privacy for patients with possible diseases. People who suspect that they have illnesses or diseases, such as Hepatitis and HIV, would rather want to realise their suspicions at h ome through the use of do-it-yourself test kits than go to a doctor and risk other people finding out about their possible disease.The greater convenience and the less time exhausted are also major factors that contri besidese to the popularity of home test kits. Furthermore, while doctors and health care professionals are pleased that the diagnosis of certain diseases can be done at home, a major cause of concern is that some patients do not consult a doctor even if they exhibit symptoms of a particular disease mainly because they tested negative in the home test kit.The Detroit Medical Center also embossed another concern that patients who use home testing kits think of themselves more as consumers than patients as they can purchase these kits from pharmacies and other drug companies. This essentially defeats the primary role of the doctor which is to evaluate a patients health condition, diagnose his or her possible diseases, and prescribe a treatment that would eventually cur e him or her.Moreover, some companies, especially those accessible online, submit that they are licensed by the government to operate but they are really not. Basically, all the issues, inaccuracies, and flaws of do-it-yourself kits suggest that patients who use them dont al appearances get the whole story regarding their health condition. The results that patients obtain from these kits are merely bits and pieces of the possible disease or condition that they may have.Doctors still know bestGenerally, despite the accessibility of the home testing kits and the convenience that they provide, it is best to consult a doctor first before do conclusions regarding a disease. A patient may test negative for a certain home test kit but the symptoms he or she exhibits may prove otherwise only if he or she consults a doctor, who is the best person to evaluate your health condition. The results of a cholesterol do-it-yourself kit may provide a patient with the amount of cholesterol in his o r her body, but it does not say which type of cholesterol he or she has in excess.The patient may have more of the bad cholesterol than the good cholesterol or vice versa, but he or she will never know unless his or her blood is tested in an actual laboratory. Although do-it-yourself kits can give patients an persuasion about the status of their health, according to the Detroit Medical Center, the tests done on an actual laboratory with certified and experienced professionals is still the best, safest, and most accurate way to diagnose any disease or medical condition.In his article, Walton Crocker suggests that before buying any home test kit, it is best to first consult a doctor to first assess the accuracy and reliability of the home test kit and also evaluate the condition of the patient. Furthermore, patients should also inform a pharmacist of the medications they are taking as some medications can give false negative or false positive results in home test kits.