Private MD News
Home |
News |
Blood and Blood Diseases
Blood testing could benefit organ transplant patients
Updated: 2010-04-23 19:00:50 CST Category: Blood and Blood Diseases
A simple blood test could be all it takes for doctors to determine how the bodies of patients who receive heart transplants are accepting the new organ, allowing patients to forego more invasive procedures, a new study found.
Currently, doctors must perform invasive biopsies of the area around transplants, but the study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that patients who were given the blood test had just as good outcomes as those who went through the traditional procedures.
The test looks at certain genes in the patient's blood, and uses those results to determine whether or not the heart is being rejected.
Researcher Dr Michael Pham told the New York times that the simple blood test would not only be much less expensive, it would also be much more comfortable for patients.
He told the news source that the test, combined with advances in medical imaging, would be a major step forward for organ transplants. I think it will cause a paradigm shift in the way we look at monitoring for rejection, he said.
The Mayo Clinic, one of the largest organ transplant centers in the country, estimates that 77 people receive a transplanted organ each day.

Related Articles from Private MD:
Share on Facebook
Subscribe to Private MD Health News RSS Feed: 
News Categories:
Advanced Lipid Treatment I
Allergy Testing
Anemia and RBC disorders
Autoimmune Diseases
Bariatric Lab Testing
Blood and Blood Diseases
Breast
Cancer Detection and Tumor Markers
Celiac Disease Testing
Chlamydia
Coagulation and blood clotting disorders
Colon
Diabetes
DNA, Paternity and Genetic testing
Drug Screening
Environmental Toxin Testing
Female Specific Tests
Gastrointestinal Diseases
General Health
General Wellness
Heart Health and Cholesterol
Herpes
HIV
HIV monitoring/Treatment/Testing/Post Diagnos
Hormones and Metabolism
Infectious Diseases
Infertility Testing-Male
Infertitlity Hormone Testing
Kidney Diseases
Leukemia and WBC disorders
Liver
Liver Diseases
Lyme Disease
Male Specific Tests
Menopause/Peri-Menopausal Diagnosis
Organ Specific Testing
Ovarian
Prostate
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Thyroid Diseases
Vitamin D Deficiency-Diagnosis and Treatment
Visit the Health News Archive: Click Here
Questions about online blood testing or how to order a lab test? Click
here to get started or call us toll-free at
1.877.283.7882. Our certified professionals are ready to assist
you.