Clinical analysis

A clinical analysis or laboratory test is a type of exploratory test that consists of taking biological samples from a patient for later analysis in the laboratory. It provides an objective result, which can be quantitative (a number, as in the case of the glucose number) or qualitative (positive or negative). This test is part of the patient care process. It is requested by a doctor to the clinical laboratory and serves to confirm or rule out a diagnosis, detect anomalies or obtain the necessary information to apply a certain treatment or any other therapeutic procedure.

Interpretation

The result of a clinical analysis falls within the reference values established for each population, and requires a medical interpretation. Both concepts should not be confused, on the one hand there is the result of the laboratory test performed, and on the other, the interpretation that the doctor gives to those results.

When carrying out a clinical analysis, certain characteristics of each diagnostic test are always taken into account; such as: the specificity, sensitivity, predictive value, accuracy, precision and validity (analytical, clinical and useful of said test), as well as the preparation and collection of the sample or the reference range.

History

One of the first clinical analyzes was the pregnancy test, invented by Carlos Galli Mainini in 1948, which came to replace the one described by Friedman.

Currently, automated, computerized and specialized clinical analyzers in different analytical fields such as hematology, complete blood count, clinical biochemistry, urinalysis, microbiology, and genetics, among others, prevail in laboratories. Electronic examinations, radioimmunoassays, and enzymatic methods have made it possible to accurately dose small amounts such as nanograms, micrograms, or picograms, making it possible to determine tumor markers, antibody identification, and hormone dosages. These clinical analyzers and reagent kits They are, in general, a medical device for in vitro diagnosis.