Frequently Asked Questions

Before collection

• Do I have to be fasting to carry out my analysis?

  Some examinations require you to be fasting at the time of sampling.

  This means not having eaten or drunk alcoholic or sugary drinks for at least 12 hours and not having smoked. However, you can drink a small glass of water, take your usual medications (except for a dosage of one of them) or brush your teeth.

  Among these examinations (Lexhaustive list – the precise list for each laboratory is available in the “FAQ” section of your laboratory) :

  • ACTH
  • Calcitonin
  • Calcium
  • Cross Laps
  • Cryoglobulins (by appointment)
  • Blood sugar
  • Assessment of a Lipid Abnormality (BAL): Cholesterol, Triglycerides, Apolipoprotein A1, Apolipoprotein B, HDL, LDL
  • Serum iron
  • Fibrometer
  • Fibrotest / Actitest
  • Serum or erythrocyte folate
  • Gastrin
  • Induced hyperglycemia
  • Insulin
  • Phosphorus
  • Vitamin B9-B12… D2D3…
  • Sedimentation rate
  • HELIKIT test – strict fasting

  If you do not need to fast, you can have a light breakfast avoiding fat and you can drink water, tea, coffee, etc.

  Regarding strict fasting, you can neither drink a glass of water, nor brush your teeth, nor smoke.

• Should I make an appointment at the lab?

  For most examinations, you can go to the nearest laboratory without an appointment (except in the case of specialized and reserved samples), depending on opening hours. You will be quickly taken care of there in order of arrival.

  In the case of specialized and reserved samples, competent and qualified personnel must be available. An appointment is then obligatory. Our medical secretaries will inform you about all the conditions for taking the sample (compulsory fasting or not, special diet to follow, functional tests subject to compliance with a specific protocol, conditions for collecting stools, urine).

• I have several prescriptions from different doctors

  In this case, a file will be compiled for each of the prescriptions and each doctor will have the results of the examinations he has requested.

  These files will be the subject of a direct debit and a single invoicing.

Other

• What is medical biology?

  Medical biology is a specialty whose goal is above all:

  • carrying out medical biology examinations to measure the different constituents of biological fluids (blood, urine, cerebrospinal fluid, etc.)
  • the medical interpretation of the results in order to characterize the physiopathological origin of a disease. The value of examination results varies depending on the age and condition of the patient; certain constituents only exist in cases of pathology.

  Medical biology is a specialty at the heart of the medical diagnosis process: about 70% of diagnoses in general medicine are made with the support of biological results.
  Beyond the diagnosis, medical biology allows the follow-up of patients suffering from chronic pathology and the dosage adjustment of their treatment, as well as the control of the tolerance of their treatment (side effects).

  In France, this medical specialty is exclusively exercised by doctors or pharmacists specialized in medical biology (Article L6213-1).

• What is the role of your biologist?

  Your medical biologists are all graduates with a doctorate in medicine or pharmacy.

  After their initial training, they all passed the internship competition and followed a medical biology internship for 4 years in order to obtain a specialist diploma in medical biology (DES).

  The medical biologist has a central role in the care of the patient and in his course of care, his panel of missions is vast and diversified, ranging from the supervision of the teams to the signature of the biological assessments:

  • taking samples (blood, microbiological, etc.)
  • carrying out medical biology examinations to measure the different constituents of biological fluids (blood, urine, stool, etc.)
  • the reporting of results to patients and doctors after medical-technical expertise
  • medical interpretation of results and provision of advice
  • close collaboration with prescribing physicians and nurses: advice on the interpretation of assessments and the examinations to be prescribed, communication of urgent and pathological results in order to ensure the best possible care.