The Role of Biomedical Analysis in Medical Diagnosis

Chemical changes may occur in the internal environment of the human body due to pathological processes. These chemical changes can be detected by the analysis of various samples taken from the body. This analysis helps in the diagnosis of various ailments, making a prognosis and determining the progress of treatment. The samples taken from the body are analyzed in 3 sections within a clinical laboratory set up. These sections are:

• Chemistry section – In this section, the analysis of blood, urine, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and other fluids is performed to determine the quantity of various substances they contain. Most of the electronic instruments can be found in this section.
• Microbiology section – Here, studies are performed on various body tissues and fluids to determine the presence of pathological micro-organisms.
• Haematology section – The determination of the number and characteristics of the constituents of the blood, especially the blood cells is done in this section.

The key substance for analysis from the body is blood. This is because of the fact that, blood carries out the most important function of transportation and many pathological processes manifest themselves as demonstrable changes in the blood. Also deviations from the normal composition of urine may reflect many pathological processes. The blood plasma, which is the liquid part of the blood, and its formed elements i.e. the blood cells are analyzed during a chemical examination.

You can also read:

• Introduction to medical diagnostics
• Quantitative chemical analysis