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Pathology Test |
What is pathology test?
(February 25, 2010)
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One of the most important functions of science and medicine is to study diseases and find ways to treat them. This field of science, where diseases are studied, is known as pathology and tests that are conducted to identify the presence of diseases are known as pathological tests.
Throughout the world, there are central organizations of pathological studies where qualified scientists and medical technologists study different pathogens and find out their behavior in relation to the human body. Besides this pathologists also have the responsibility of tracking outbreaks and finding out means of preventing them.
Pathology tests may include a varied range of lab analysis of materials collected from the human body. There are many different tests that may be conducted on the blood, urine, stool, saliva and tissues collected from various parts of the body. These studies and tests are aimed to find out the causes and signs of various diseases. Once the pathologists are able to confirm the presence of the disease and identify its causes, the doctors can then make a diagnosis and start the treatment of the patient accordingly.
Pathology is one of the oldest of medical disciplines. In fact, the origins of pathology can be traced back to the time where doctors first began interacting with their patients in scientific terms. Even though the methods of testing were not as sophisticated at that time, the basis of the evaluations and pathological testing remain the same.
Pathology tests are the primary support for physicians and specialists. If the pathology tests are not performed correctly, in the manner that they should be performed in, there are good chances of the physician giving a misdiagnosis. If the patient is misdiagnosed due to any reason, the treatment given out is not correct and therefore can affect the patient, worsening their condition further.
Under normal circumstances, patients never go to pathologists directly. It is the physician who will usually recommend a pathological test to the patient. It is the pathologist’s job to examine the samples given for diagnosis of any disease. Pathology tests are often also performed on patients who have died, to ascertain the cause of death. Pathologists will also be found performing autopsies. However, this is a separate field of study, known as forensic pathology.
Pathology tests also require a lot of sophisticated machinery. The pathologists who perform analysis in the labs are trained to handle the machinery so that human error can be avoided. However, human error often creeps in during the collection of samples and the process of transporting and storing them.
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Submitted by M T on February 25, 2010 at 02:28
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