Every Blood Test Men Over 50 Years Old Should Get

Comprehensive Metabolic Panel

A comprehensive metabolic panel includes the results from the basic metabolic panel above but digs even deeper. It also evaluates your calcium, protein, albumin, bilirubin, phosphatase, AST, and ALT levels. That’s a lot of science right there, but in short, these are substances your liver produces or manages.

This test can determine if you have liver or kidney problems and if you’re at risk of developing kidney stones or gallstones. Your doctor may order more tests based on the results to see if you have any blockages in your urinary tract, liver, or kidneys.

Lipid Panel

This test evaluates your cholesterol levels and is broken down into four parts. It looks at good cholesterol, bad cholesterol, triglycerides, and the total amount of cholesterol in your blood. Having too much cholesterol in your blood can trigger a heart attack, so your doctor may want to make sure you’re managing your cholesterol levels with the right diet and medications, if necessary.

If you have high cholesterol, you may be prescribed medication to treat it. To make sure the medication is working properly, you may need to have a lipid panel performed regularly so that your doctor can celador your progress.