Video: Types of Home Cholesterol Tests

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Cholesterol is a major factor in heart disease so home cholesterol tests can be very helpful. Learn more about different types of home cholesterol tests with tips from a Certified Medical Assistant in this free health video.

Video Transcript

There are a number of home cholesterol tests on the market currently. Some of them only test your LDL or bad cholesterol. Some will give you a total cholesterol count. And, most recently, they've come up with a home lab machine that can test for triglycerides, LDL, bad cholesterol, and total cholesterol based upon which of three testing agent strips you use in the machine. The test I've selected for today's demonstration is a simple home cholesterol test. It was thirteen dollars at the grocery store in the pharmacy section. And it's a three step test involving a finger prick to draw a blood sample. A place to put the blood in the actual test kit and you wait twelve minutes and read the results. And it will tell me my total cholesterol. Monitoring cholesterol can be important for people who have had heart attacks in the past or who have had blocked arteries or other cardiac issues that arise from high cholesterol. It's also a way for a patient to monitor their cholesterol in between doctor's visits. And seeing as a standard cholesterol test involves a venous blood draw from the crook of the arm, it's a little more convenient, maybe a little more cost effective to cut down on venous blood draws by having patients using the cholesterol test at home. Like I say, there's a number of different cholesterol tests and your physician or other health care provider can help you select the right one for you.

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Types of Home Cholesterol Tests

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