shepherdgirl
Member
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2015
- Messages
- 711
Currently there are many home kits or devices for obtaining labs. (If they are taken at home, can they still be called "labs"?) Lots of people would like to avoid the expense and inconvenience of traveling to obtain laboratory testing. Some doctors refuse to order the labs desired, or insurance won't cover them. Some state laws prohibit consumer ordered labs, so home testing could help the consumer when noone else will. Home testing could allow for frequent, and sometimes immediate, feedback on how lifestyle changes affect labs. Home testing can help people avoid dealing with doctors when they don't want to or help them to monitor labs while away from their doctor. Some people are homebound and cannot even get to a lab easily, so home testing is required.
I am wondering if anyone would like to share their experience with home lab devices/kits - just to name a few: cholesterol meters, blood sugar meters, infrared blood sugar meters, blood pressure/pulse readers, blood drop/saliva/hair kits, etc, etc. There are too many to list. What has your experience been with use of home kits- were they easy/fast to use? Were they accurate? Do you think lab testing is better? etc.
I have had good experience using various brands of blood pressure monitors. They seem to yield pretty consistent readings that tend to be in line with nurses' readings. There is an art to measuring the blood pressure, so I think there is more chance of error when a nurse measures bp. Also, patients in the doctor's office are likely to be nervous and have unnaturally high bp. Regarding the bp monitor, the cuff has to be put on correctly and bp should be measured after being still, etc.
Pulse measurement: I do not have faith in the apps that use your phone's camera to measure pulse because I have read that they are inaccurate. For the same reason I do not have faith in the oximeter apps. Has anyone tried these apps? What has been your experience?
My impression is that the pulse measurement on many bp cuffs is likely decently accurate. My pulse results are in the expected range. Can anyone else share their impressions?
I am interested in home monitoring of cholesterol (total and maybe also LDL and HDL) and blood sugar - has anyone tried any of the meters? Or perhaps a home testing kit or one that you send back? Do you find them to be worthwhile/accurate? How do they compare to lab measures?
I am wondering if anyone would like to share their experience with home lab devices/kits - just to name a few: cholesterol meters, blood sugar meters, infrared blood sugar meters, blood pressure/pulse readers, blood drop/saliva/hair kits, etc, etc. There are too many to list. What has your experience been with use of home kits- were they easy/fast to use? Were they accurate? Do you think lab testing is better? etc.
I have had good experience using various brands of blood pressure monitors. They seem to yield pretty consistent readings that tend to be in line with nurses' readings. There is an art to measuring the blood pressure, so I think there is more chance of error when a nurse measures bp. Also, patients in the doctor's office are likely to be nervous and have unnaturally high bp. Regarding the bp monitor, the cuff has to be put on correctly and bp should be measured after being still, etc.
Pulse measurement: I do not have faith in the apps that use your phone's camera to measure pulse because I have read that they are inaccurate. For the same reason I do not have faith in the oximeter apps. Has anyone tried these apps? What has been your experience?
My impression is that the pulse measurement on many bp cuffs is likely decently accurate. My pulse results are in the expected range. Can anyone else share their impressions?
I am interested in home monitoring of cholesterol (total and maybe also LDL and HDL) and blood sugar - has anyone tried any of the meters? Or perhaps a home testing kit or one that you send back? Do you find them to be worthwhile/accurate? How do they compare to lab measures?