Comprehensive metabolic panel
A blood test measuring 14 substances to assess blood sugar, proteins, electrolyte balance, and kidney and liver function.
Electrolyte: A substance that forms electrically charged particles when dissolved in water. Sodium, potassium, chloride, and bicarbonate are electrolytes included in the panel.
Serum electrolyte test: A blood test measuring electrolytes such as sodium, potassium, chloride, and bicarbonate. These four measurements form the panel's electrolyte portion.
Basic metabolic panel: A blood test measuring eight substances related mainly to glucose, electrolytes, and kidney function. It omits the comprehensive panel's liver-associated tests and protein measurements.
Hemoglobin A1c: A blood test estimating average blood glucose over roughly the previous two to three months. Unlike the panel's glucose value, it reflects longer-term blood sugar levels.
Glucose: A simple sugar that circulates in blood and supplies energy to cells. The panel's glucose result measures blood sugar at the time of collection.
Estimated glomerular filtration rate: An estimate of how much blood the kidneys filter per minute, usually calculated from creatinine and other factors. Laboratories commonly report it alongside the panel to interpret creatinine in terms of kidney filtration.
Reference range: A range of test values observed in a defined reference population, used to help interpret laboratory results. A result outside the laboratory's range prompts context-specific interpretation rather than proving disease.
Urinalysis: An examination of urine for physical, chemical, and microscopic findings. It can provide kidney and metabolic clues from a different specimen than the panel's blood sample.
Albumin: The most abundant protein in blood plasma, made primarily by the liver. Its level contributes information about liver production and protein balance.
Aspartate transaminase: An enzyme present in liver, muscle, and other tissues that can rise in blood after cell injury. Its value is interpreted with alanine transaminase and other liver-associated results.