Blood test results checker

Quick answer: this blood test results checker covers 41 common markers, from ApoB and LDL cholesterol to HbA1c, TSH and testosterone. Pick your sex and age, type in any results you have, and each row shows a band with the exact range and source behind it. It uses the same ranges as our biomarker guides, so the numbers match across the site. It is not medical advice, and your own lab's range comes first.

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What the bands mean

Every row lands in one of four bands. The cut-offs are the ones printed in the "Range used" column, so you can see exactly why a number was sorted the way it was.

Borderline is the band people most often misread. For some markers it is a real risk tier: an HbA1c of 5.7% to 6.4% is the American Diabetes Association's prediabetes range, and an LDL of 130 to 159 mg/dL is "borderline high" in the NCEP scheme. For others it marks a disagreement between sources. Many labs print an ALT upper limit of 36 to 56 U/L, while the American College of Gastroenterology puts a truly healthy ALT at up to 33 U/L for men and 25 for women. The checker shows the stricter line as borderline so you can ask about it, rather than hiding it.

A worked example

Take a 45-year-old man whose report shows ApoB 112 mg/dL, LDL 138 mg/dL, HDL 44 mg/dL, triglycerides 180 mg/dL, HbA1c 5.8%, hs-CRP 2.4 mg/L, vitamin D 24 ng/mL and total testosterone 410 ng/dL. Every one of those can come back unflagged, or only lightly flagged, on a standard lab report. The checker reads them like this:

• ApoB 112 and LDL 138: both borderline. ApoB counts every atherogenic particle, and 90 to 119 mg/dL sits between Mayo Clinic Laboratories' desirable band and its high band.
• Triglycerides 180 with HDL 44: borderline triglycerides, HDL in range. Divide one by the other and the triglyceride to HDL ratio is 4.1, above the 3.0 line linked with insulin resistance.
• HbA1c 5.8%: borderline, just inside the prediabetes range.
• hs-CRP 2.4: borderline, the AHA/CDC "average risk" tier, and above the 2.0 mg/L that the 2018 AHA/ACC guideline counts as a risk enhancer.
• Vitamin D 24 and testosterone 410: both in range.

No single number is alarming, but five borderline results pointing the same way (particles, triglycerides, blood sugar, inflammation) is a pattern worth a conversation with a doctor, and worth retesting in three to six months after changes to diet, exercise or treatment. Press "Fill in an example" above to load these numbers.

Where the ranges come from

We use the same sources as our biomarker guides, so the checker and the guides never disagree. In order of preference:

1. Clinical guidelines where a guideline sets cut-offs: ADA for HbA1c and glucose, NCEP ATP III for cholesterol, the National Lipid Association for Lp(a), the AHA/CDC statement for hs-CRP, the AUA for testosterone, the ACG for ALT and KDIGO and the National Kidney Foundation for eGFR.
2. Reference labs for hormones and markers without a guideline threshold: ARUP Laboratories, Mayo Clinic Laboratories and Labcorp publish their ranges by sex and age.
3. MedlinePlus (US National Library of Medicine) for common chemistry: creatinine, AST, ALP, BUN, iron, B12, folate and hemoglobin.

Sex and age matter for about a third of the markers. Ferritin, iron, creatinine and hemoglobin run lower in women; SHBG and DHEA-S change a lot with age; PSA has age-specific upper limits (2.5 ng/mL in your 40s up to 6.5 in your 70s); FSH and estradiol depend on whether you are still cycling. The checker switches range automatically when you change sex or age. Progesterone and LH are left out because they only make sense with the day of your cycle.

Units follow US lab reports. If your report is in SI units (mmol/L, nmol/L, umol/L), convert with the lab unit converter first, or the bands will be wrong.

What to do with a flagged result

• Check the basics first. Were you fasting if the test needs it (glucose, triglycerides, insulin)? Was cortisol taken in the morning? Were you ill? An hs-CRP above 10 mg/L usually means a recent infection, not heart risk. Our guide to fasting before a blood test lists which markers care.
• Retest before acting on one number. Most markers vary from week to week. The ADA requires a second test before diagnosing diabetes.
• Take it to a clinician. Bring the report and the trend if you have one. Our guide to reading blood test results explains what they will look at.

If you do not have recent results, or want to track a borderline number, the which blood test quiz suggests a panel in six questions, and the biomarker coverage matrix shows which service measures which marker.

Track your numbers over timeOne result is a snapshot. SiPhox lets you retest monthly, quarterly or twice a year and switch panels each time, from $124 plus $25 shipping.

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Frequently asked questions