In this article, I'll address a real mainstay of modern medicine: laboratory tests that require drawing blood. This is sometimes referred to as "checking labs," "doing bloodwork," or even "checking blood." Most older adults have been through this. For instance, it's pretty much impossible to be hospitalized without having bloodwork done, and it's part of most emergency room care. Such testing is also often done as part of an annual exam, or "complete physical." Last but not least, blood testing is usually although not always very helpful when it comes to evaluating many common complaints that affect aging adults. Fatigued and experiencing low energy? We should perhaps check for anemia and thyroid problems, among other things. Confused and delirious? Bloodwork can help us check on an older person's electrolytes (they can be thrown off by a medication side-effect, as well as by other causes). Blood tests can also provide us with information related to infection, kidney function, and much more. Like much of medical care, blood testing is probably overused. But often, it's an appropriate and an important part of evaluating an older person's health care concerns. So as a geriatrician, I routinely order or recommend blood tests for older adults. Historically, laboratory results were reviewed by the doctors and were only minimally discussed with patients and families. But today, it's becoming more common for patients to ask questions about their results, and otherwise become more knowledgeable about this aspect of their health. In fact, one of my top recommendations to older adults and family caregivers is to always request a copy of your laboratory results. (And then, keep it in your personal health record!) This way, if you ever have questions about your health, or need to see a different doctor, you'll be able to quickly access this useful information about yourself. In this article, I'm going to list and briefly explain the blood tests that are most commonly used, for the primary medical care of older... When is blood-work done? - after hospital visits - during hospital visits - not enough information - before hospital visits
during hospital visits
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Patch's mother was named Silver, because high summer sun made her fur shine that colour. She had a marvellous drey high up a spruce tree, carved out long ago by a woodpecker, and since extended into a two-chambered home full of bright things. The journey along the sky-road to her drey did not take long. When Patch looked inside, he saw a hundred colours glittering in the sunlight, shining from bits of metal and glass set into Silver's walls and floor. But his mother was not there. He could tell by the faintness of her smell that no squirrel had been here in some time. There were two faint traces of scent, several days old; that of Silver, and that of another squirrel, a musky scent that Patch did not recognize. A scent that made his tail stiffen as if danger was near. Patch stared into his mother's empty drey for a moment. It wasn't normal for a squirrel to abandon her drey for days, not in the middle of winter. And he hadn't seen Silver for three days. Not since all the acorns had disappeared from the earth. Patch ran back to his own tree, and then to the maple tree next door, to his brother Tuft's drey. He ran very fast. He was hungrier than ever, and he was beginning to be very worried. He was relieved when he looked into Tuft's drey and found it occupied. Tuft himself was not present, but Brighteyes was, and their babies, and it was clear from the smells that Tuft had only just departed. "Hello, Patch," Brighteyes said weakly. "Would you like to come in?" Patch entered. Brighteyes was curled up with her babies in the drey's deepest, warmest corner. The last time Patch had visited, a week ago, this had been a den of noise and chaos, with all Brighteyes' four babies running and jumping and playfighting. Today they lay weakly beside Brighteyes, and the once-shining eyes from which their mother had taken her name were dim and clouded. After the story, the babies will likely be discovered to be: - Sick - Missing - Happy - not enough information
Sick
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U.S. President Donald Trump expressed optimism about a planned meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un following conversations Saturday with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Trump tweeted he had a "very good talk" with Moon and updated Abe on plans for his anticipated summit with Kim. Key U.S. leaders are expressing growing optimism that decades of hostility on the Korean Peninsula are closer than ever to coming to an end. Trump said at a White House news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel Friday "I don't think he's playing" when asked about the historic summit between North and South Korea. Trump added a meeting would be scheduled "very shortly" but didn't specify a timeline, saying up to three possible sites are being considered for the much-anticipated summit in late May or early June. Earlier Friday, Kim became the first North Korean leader to set foot in South Korea, when he crossed the border to shake the hand of South Korean President Moon Jae-in. The two leaders agreed to work toward removing all nuclear weapons from the Korean peninsula and vowed to pursue talks that would bring a formal end to the Korean war. North Korea has in the past made similar commitments about its nuclear program, but failed to follow through. Asked whether Pyongyang's commitment is real this time, Trump said "we're not going to get played." "This isn't like past administrations. We don't play games," said Trump, adding that previous administrations had been "played like a fiddle." "We will come up with a solution, and if we don't we will leave the room," he said. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis also expressed hope Friday that talks with North Korea will bear fruit. "I can tell you that we are optimistic right now that there's opportunity here that we have never enjoyed since 1950," Mattis said before a meeting at the Pentagon with the Polish defense minister. "I don't have a crystal ball," he added. "So, we're going to have to see what they produce." After the conference trump stated - a good initiative by Korean countries - not enough information - Korean countries discussed on nuclear weapon eradication - historic event took place in Korean peninsula
a good initiative by Korean countries
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