Posted by jparsell82 on August 26, 2003, at 11:33:28
In reply to Re: Receive Mail-In Hormone test from home, posted by Janis on August 26, 2003, at 6:40:16
from Dr. Ward Dean,
"Salivary hormone measurements have been used for many years as a research tool, but have only recently gained popularity in clinical use. Although hormones are present in saliva in fractional amounts compared to their levels in blood, using sophisticated radio-immunoassay (RIA) and enzyme techniques, highly accurate levels of hormones can be determined in saliva. Although the absolute values of the hormones in saliva are, of course, different from those in blood, the salivary levels are accurate, reproducible and clinically relevant. Additionally, salivary hormone testing offers a number of advantages over blood testing.First, salivary hormone testing is non-invasive and painless.
Second, the testing can be done at any time, anyplace, at the convenience of the patient. This allows for testing in a stress-free environment, and at the proper times to determine peak hormone levels, since hormones rise and fall predictably at certain times of the day. For example, melatonin levels peak between 1 AM and 3 AM; DHEA, cortisol and the sex steroids (estrogen, progesterone and testosterone) are highest in the morning. In addition, because salivary testing is less expensive than blood testing, multiple and sequential tests of several hormones can be performed, providing even greater amounts of information regarding the complex interaction of hormones.
Third, salivary hormone levels may be even more accurate than serum levels as an indicator of hormone activity. The reason is that all of the hormone in the saliva is the active, free hormone. On the other hand, a large percentage of the hormones in blood are bound to plasma proteins, rendering them inactive. Saliva samples avoid these problems by giving an index of the free hormone levels."
poster:jparsell82
thread:253283
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030823/msgs/254299.html