Laboratory Values And Relevance To Pharmaceutical Care (PC)

Laboratory values are the result of laboratory tests carried out by a diagnostic laboratory. Minor diagnosis can be carried out in community pharmacy. An example is blood pressure monitor and blood glucose level. There are different types of laboratory tests. Some are compared with normal values. Others only state there are abnormalities with the body part.

Laboratory values relevance

Pharmacists have a key role in selecting appropriate laboratory tests for therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM), interpreting tests to determine whether a drug is producing its desired therapeutic effect, and avoiding adverse drug effects. They can recommend that a laboratory test be done only if the results may lead to some action such as a dosage reduction, discontinuation of a drug, or ordering of additional tests to confirm the presence of an adverse effect. The pharmacist should select the pertinent objective data needed to follow a specific drug therapy. Current medication can also be included.

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Interpretation of the result is very easy. It involves the pharmacist understanding the value and the normal, the consequences of deviation from the normal and how to solve it. The solution can either be reduce or increase dose, remove or add a drug, reduce or increase frequency or stop treatment.

Relevance Of Laboratory Value

Laboratory values are one of the ways therapeutic intervention is measured. For example, approach normal physiology (i.e., normalize blood pressure below 140/90 mmHg) is the goal of therapy. Regular measurement is needed to ensure the intervention is achieving its effects.

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An example of a situation that requires laboratory values is the use of anticoagulants (e.g., rivaroxaban), the dosage of which depends on the patient’s renal function. There are certainly multiple occasions when the dose decreased or a switch to an alternative agent was necessary due to a patient’s renal function. Access to certain laboratory values, such as thyroid function tests or A1C, would be beneficial for a pharmacist to determine the effectiveness of a given medication.