A large medical laboratory will accept samples for up to about 700 different kinds of tests. Even the largest of laboratories rarely do all
these tests themselves, and some must be referred to other labs.
This large array of tests can be categorized into sub-specialties of:
•
General or routine chemistry - commonly ordered blood chemistries (e.g., liver and kidney function tests).
•
Special chemistry - elaborate techniques such as electrophoresis, and manual testing methods.
•
Clinical endocrinology - the study of hormones, and diagnosis of endocrine disorders.
•
Toxicology - the study of drugs of abuse and other chemicals.
•
Therapeutic Drug Monitoring - measurement of therapeutic medication levels to optimize dosage.
•
Urinalysis - chemical analysis of urine for a wide array of diseases, along with other fluids such as CSF and effusions
•
Fecal analysis - mostly for detection of gastrointestinal disorders.
