Blood test in a child: transcript - can I do it myself?

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Even in the hospital, the first blood test is taken from the child. It is deciphered by a neonatologist, and if there are any deviations from the norm in the results, the mother is informed about this upon discharge from the maternity hospital, and all data is transferred to the local pediatrician. The baby will now have to donate blood from a finger and from a vein quite often throughout his life: during illness, after recovery, during medical examinations, before operations or for prevention purposes. In the first year of life, a complete blood count will be taken from the crumbs monthly, paying particular attention to the level of leukocytes and hemoglobin.

Often, parents are given a sheet with the result, which showed a blood test for a child. Deciphering it will not be difficult if you know the limits of the norm for each parameter. However, before proceeding to the consideration of this topic, I would like to warn the reader - only a doctor should make final conclusions, make a diagnosis and prescribe any treatment! Even if the decoding of the biochemic althe child's blood test, which you conducted yourself, did not show any abnormalities, be sure to provide it to the doctor - he may see something that escaped your attention, but it will be important for diagnosing any disease.

What are blood tests?

1. General - the most frequently assigned. It can be used to judge inflammatory processes, the presence of worms, anemia, disorders in the endocrine system and many others, especially infectious diseases.
2. Biochemical blood test in a child. Its decoding is more detailed, according to the results of this study, one can judge the state of internal organs.

If necessary, the doctor may also prescribe other types of blood tests: for allergens, hormones, etc. Newborns, if necessary, are examined for genetic diseases.

There is another one

In the morning and on an empty stomach, it is recommended to take a clinical blood test from a child. The interpretation of samples taken from one child at different times of the day is significantly different - after eating, the concentration of leukocytes increases, after sleep - erythrocytes.

If on the form that was given to you after you passed the clinical blood test of the child, there is already a transcript (that is, the normal range is indicated next to the indicator obtained), be careful. Many hospitals still print the results of children's examinations on "adult" forms. In addition, many indicators can only be assessed in comparison with others.parameters, and only a specialist can do this. There are several reasons for this:

1. Only a doctor will be able to assess the picture as a whole, taking into account various nuances that could affect the result: taking antibiotics, other drugs, post-infection and postoperative condition.
2. Only a specialist can prescribe the right treatment for a cold, calculating the cause of the disease by analysis - a bacterium or a virus.
3. A doctor can tell if an increase in lymphocytes is the result of an old ARVI or a new infection.

Therefore, we strongly recommend that you do not use the numerous tables found on the Internet, but consult a doctor who will draw the right conclusions.