That's what I was thinking- what kind of world are we living in that health can now be bought bargain basement?

A good one , as long as the quality doesnt reflect the cost.

Hi,

Did hear about one lab, though, Igenex(?) I think is the spelling, that does good work testing for Lyme Disease. The kit is purchased from it and then sent back for analysis.

But all in all, don't know about going willy-nilly to labs I know nothing about.

Sheltiemom18

Oh Melon, I don't think it is a good one, too many people are hanging around this board without a diagnosis (myself included), and may think Clinics offering low cost tests are the way to go. Everyone should be able to have their health problems treated with dignity, efficiency and respect and I know this is too idealistic....

Life Extension uses Labcorp for their blood tests. They can offer prices lower than retail because of volume. If you don't have insurance, there is nothing wrong with shopping around for best value. My brother-in-law was able to negotiate a lower rate for an MRI.

Don't forget...some doctors cannot even interpret tests correctly...or ignore warning signs. A very common test often ignored is MCV in a CBC... Elevations in this test point to low B12, but doctors ignore it.

Doctors ignore low B12 values, and low Vit D values sometimes, too.

So it is not only the lab in question, IMO.

Yes, very true on interpreting the test. And so many do not look at trends and compare prior results to current results to see the changes that may give an indication to explore further.

We saw that with John....there was a definite shift in some of his blood work at an annual physical. We questioned it but were told the current numbers were still in a normal range. In hindsight, we should have pushed for retesting in 3 months but they were so convincing that there is nothing going on, we let it drop. Next time, I'll follow my intuition. Hope there's not a next time.

Could we have stopped or prevented what finally hit him? We'll never know. But I do know, we would have known about his problem before it became a crisis and been able to manage it better emotionally, and would not have been pressured to decide on treatment during all the confusion.

how true that is Marlene about not paying attention to trends. too many doctors just look at abnormal results even when a trend is pointed out to them by the patient. "yeah but its still normal range" but its dropped 35% in last month "yeah but its still normal range" ad nauseum.

Marlene we all do the best we can with the information and professional or otherwise expert advice proferred. sometimes information conflicts or isnt clear cut. At the end of the day all we can do is the best that we can.

Mrs D I dont personally know you , but I know youve been here helping folk selflessly for years , if there was ever such a thing as co-op run health service Id trust you with my life before any doctor .

From my perspective i see the problem lies in education and the whole nature of money and payment.

Part of caring service is the fact is supposed to be about caring , but whats misleading is that most of these people doing do not care at all.

The main reasons i see for this are.

a ) Science and empathy do not mix unless its for something they believe in i.e. global warming , or greater ideals - not individual cases

b ) Doctors are being paid far too much for service they dont deliver ( simply referring you or giving you drugs does not justify 7 yrs in medical school )

c ) The payment attracts the wrong type of people ie.. the very sort who would happily have no qualms about selling out folk with bad care so they can get money

d ) No one seems to be checking to see if Doctors are " updating " their knowledge so they always have excues to refer you ( how convienient ) or give you passive care i.e. drugs.

e ) The whole emphais of health care in the uk at least is on passive care , not treating the problem but simply masking the pain , you dont need to be Einstein to see why ..

Just some of them IMO.

m

I am a physician, a radiologist, so I do not know a lot about neuropathy. Sure I can spot masses, MS plaques, spinal disk disease, etc that can lead to neuropathy, but this is not the same a clinical diagnosis. Neuropathy may be easy to diagnose, but finding the cause and thus the treatment can be extremely difficult. I am idiopathic myself as all of my studies, except the skin biopsy proving I have a small fiber neuropathy, have been normal. Although, I just found out that my free T3 and free T4 are low normal. My TSH was about 1.1, so I'm not exactly sure what to think. Might have to get with an endocrinologist. In terms of education, I have 4 years undergraduate, 4 years medical school, 5 years residency, and 1 year of fellowship. I could have started at preschool and graduated from high school twice. In terms of "updating" knowledge, I have to document continuing medical education annually, as well as get re-certified every 10 years. These are all requirements in the states. Timing of re-certification will depend on specialty. I know that some doctors do not have good people skills or clinical skills or both. Please do not lump all of us with the few bad apples. Remember that the lowest person graduating from medical school is still called doctor. It is always best to research the physician and ask for referrals and then you can significantly limit your exposure to the bad ones.

Sorry for the rant.