Doctor-Reviewed Health Guides: Conditions, Procedures & Health News

Prenatal genetic testing checks a pregnancy for certain genetic disorders and birth defects caused by changes in genes or chromosomes. Screening tests, like blood tests and ultrasounds, estimate the chance of a condition with little risk. Diagnostic tests, like amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS), confirm whether the baby has a condition but carry some risk. Testing is optional.

ERCP (endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography) is a procedure that looks inside your bile ducts and pancreatic duct. A gastroenterologist passes an endoscope through your mouth to the small intestine, injects contrast dye into the ducts and takes live X-rays to find blockages such as gallstones, narrowing or tumors, and can often treat them during the same procedure.

The McMurray test is a physical exam to check for a torn meniscus, the cartilage cushion inside the knee. With you lying on your back, the provider bends, rotates and straightens your knee while feeling and listening for a pop and asking about pain. It's a first step; imaging such as an MRI is needed to confirm a tear.

An MPV (mean platelet volume) blood test measures the average size of platelets, the blood cells that help blood clot. It's part of a complete blood count (CBC). A normal MPV is 7 to 9 femtoliters (fL) in non-pregnant adults. A high or low result isn't a diagnosis on its own; your provider reads it alongside your platelet count.

A TB test checks whether you have been infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that cause tuberculosis. There are two types: a skin test, read 48 to 72 hours after a small injection in the forearm, and a blood test. Both show past or current infection, but neither can tell whether the infection is latent (dormant) or active.

A urine albumin-creatinine ratio (uACR) is a urine test that compares the amount of albumin, a blood protein, with creatinine, a waste product, in your urine. Healthy kidneys keep albumin in the blood, so albumin in the urine can be an early sign of kidney damage. A normal uACR is less than 30 mg/g.

A nuchal translucency (NT) scan is a prenatal ultrasound, done between 11 and 13 weeks of pregnancy, that measures the fluid-filled space at the back of the fetus's neck. A small amount of fluid is normal; more fluid can point to a higher chance of a chromosomal condition or a heart problem. It's a screening test, not a diagnosis.

An endometrial biopsy is a short office procedure in which a provider passes a thin tube through the cervix and uses suction to remove a small piece of the uterine lining (endometrium). A pathologist then checks the cells for cancer and other changes. It takes 5 to 15 minutes and usually causes cramping similar to a period.

Genetic testing (a DNA test) looks for changes in your genes, chromosomes and DNA, using a sample of blood, hair, skin, tissue or amniotic fluid. It can confirm or rule out a genetic condition, show whether you have a higher risk of a disease, or reveal whether you carry an altered gene you could pass to a child.

A fetal echocardiogram (fetal echo) is a detailed ultrasound of a baby's heart during pregnancy. It shows how the heart is forming, how it beats and how blood flows through it, so your care team can find congenital heart defects before birth and plan treatment for after delivery. It is usually done between 18 and 22 weeks.

An arterial blood gas (ABG) test is a blood test taken from an artery, usually at the wrist, that measures the oxygen and carbon dioxide in your blood and its acid-base (pH) balance. It's used mainly in emergencies and to check lung, heart and metabolic conditions, and results usually come back within 10 to 15 minutes.

A barium enema (called a contrast enema or lower GI series) is an X-ray of the large intestine. A provider fills the colon with barium, a liquid inserted through the rectum, so the bowel shows up clearly. The test takes 30 to 60 minutes, needs no sedation and helps explain rectal bleeding, changing bowel habits or lower belly pain.

An autism assessment is a set of tools a provider uses to screen for or diagnose autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Quick screenings during well-child visits take 30 minutes or less, while a full diagnostic assessment can take several hours or more than one visit. Assessments are used mainly in early childhood, but many of the tools help diagnose adults.

A PKU test is a mandatory blood screening for newborns in the United States that checks for high levels of the amino acid phenylalanine. Babies with PKU cannot break down this amino acid, so it builds up in the blood and brain. Early detection allows immediate treatment to prevent irreversible brain damage, seizures and intellectual disabilities.

Normal blood pressure for adults of any age is less than 120/80 mm Hg, and the target does not rise with age even though pressure often does. Readings of 130–139 or 80–89 are stage 1 high blood pressure, and higher than 180 and/or higher than 120 is the emergency range. Children younger than 13 use age-based charts.