Interpreting Chem 7 and CBC

[michele08540]

What does in all mean when you have highs and lows.

[Roseyposey]

What values are high and what values are low?

[austin heart, BSN, RN]

I think that your question might be to broad. There are so many things in a CBC and Chem panel that could be high or low and each thing means something different.

[caroladybelle, BSN, RN]

These things are generally covered in Nursing School in fundamentals, as well as in many A&P classes as well as almost any lab test book (generally required in Nursing School).

Unfortunately, the question that you are asking, is way too broad to be answered here. And many of the answers would vary greatly with the medical condition of the patient in question.

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

These sites may be very helpful in gaining a basic understanding of the Chem 7 and CBC:

http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/bmp/bmp.html

http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/cbc/test.html

[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

When you look at a lab report you will see numerical results and some of them will be marked as being high or low. If a lab result is marked as neither high nor low, then it is within a normal range. Something is marked "high" when the result is higher than the normal range; "low" when the result is lower than the normal range. Highs and lows need to be addressed by the doctor. Another term you will hear is "panic value". This is a high or low result that is way at the far end of the range of values and needs to be reported to the doctor immediately as some kind of intervention is needed right away. If you look very closely at any lab report you should see a normal range listed by each value being reported so you have the normal scale right at your fingertips to compare the actual result to.