Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) Blood Test Panel
A TRT Blood Test Panel includes: Complete Blood Count, PSA Serum Total, Testosterone Total & Free.
Description
A Complete Blood Count (CBC) gives important information about the numbers and kinds of cells in the blood, especially red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. A CBC helps your health professional check any symptoms, such as fatigue, weakness, or bruising, that you may have. A CBC also helps your health professional diagnose conditions, such as infection, anemia, and several other disorders.
Test includes: WBC, RBC, Hemoglobin, Hematocrit, MCV, MCH, MCHC, RDW, Platelets, Neutrophils, Lymphs, Monocytes, Eos, Basos, Neutrophils (Absolute), Lymphs (Absolute), Monocytes(Absolute), Eos (Absolute), Basos (Absolute), Immature Granulocytes, Immature Grans (Abs)
PSA Serum Total - Most men have PSA levels under four (ng/mL) and this has been used as the cutoff for concern about risk of prostate cancer. Men with prostate cancer usually have PSA levels higher than four, although cancer is a possibility at any PSA level. Reports state that men who have a prostate gland that feels normal on examination and a PSA less than four have a 15% chance of having prostate cancer, and those with a PSA between four and 10 have a 25% chance of having prostate cancer and if the PSA is higher than 10, the risk increases to 67%.
Testosterone Free Direct with Total Testosterone includes both Free Direct and Total Testosterone results. Testosterone is a type of hormone (a steroid hormone). It travels around the body in the blood. Some of it floats about in the blood freely without being attached to anything else. This is 'free' testosterone. Some testosterone is attached/bound to a protein called SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin). Some testosterone is attached to a protein called albumin. So 'total' testosterone is the sum of all the testosterone in the blood, no matter what it is bound to. Free testosterone is floating around by itself and only a few percent of testosterone is free. Testosterone is a steroid hormone (androgen) that is produced by special endocrine tissue (the Leydig cells) in the male testes. Its production is controlled and controlled by luteinizing hormone (LH), which is manufactured in the pituitary gland. Testosterone works within a negative feedback mechanism, so as testosterone increases, LH decreases, while increased LH causes decreased testosterone.
Testosterone levels are diurnal and peak in the early morning hours (about 4:00 to 8:00 am), and have the lowest levels in the evening (about 4:00 to 8:00 pm). Levels increase after exercise as well, but decrease with age. Nearly two-thirds of testosterone circulates in the blood bound to sex-hormone binding protein and slightly less than one-third is bound to albumin. A small percent circulates in the blood as free testosterone. The concentration of free testosterone is very low, normally 50% of total circulating testosterone is bound to sex hormone-binding globulin, SHBG, and most of the remaining is bound to albumin. Routinely available assay methods that are used to measure total testosterone are not sensitive enough to accurately quantitate the free testosterone fraction directly. Free testosterone is estimated in this particular test by a direct, analogue radioimmunoassay method. This assay uses a labeled testosterone analogue that has a low binding affinity for both albumin and SHBG but is bound by antitestosterone antibody used in the assay. Since the analogue is unbound in the plasma, it then competes with free testosterone for binding sites on an antitestosterone antibody that is immobilized on the surface of the polypropylene tube.
