Abstract
To improve clinical laboratory contribution to the treatment of primary care patients with anorexia through automated computerized strategies. We recorded the number of laboratory requests due to anorexia; the demographic data, laboratory values, and presence of pathological values for the applicable patients. In a prospective study, the laboratory information management system (LIMS) automatically added thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and/or ferritin testing when it was not requested by general practitioners for all primary care patients with anorexia who were younger than 16 years. A total of 3562 patients underwent laboratory testing due to anorexia, of whom 47% were younger than 16 years. The tests in which the results most frequently were abnormal were hemoglobin, ferritin, and TSH. TSH results were abnormal in 20% of patients younger than 16 years. Through the intervention, we detected 3 low ferritin values and 7 cases of pathological TSH levels. The LIMS required TSH and ferritin testing in young patients even when not requested, potentially avoiding the adverse effects of iron deficiency and thyroid disorders on neurological development and cognition in those patients.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.