Labs and diagnostics

A blood sugar test taken after at least 8 hours with no food or drink other than water.

A test of a stool sample for tiny amounts of blood that cannot be seen with the eye.

A protein that stores iron in the body; its blood level shows how much iron is stored.

A swab test of vaginal fluid for a protein that holds the fetal membranes to the lining of the uterus.

Checking a fetus's heart rate during pregnancy or labor, with a handheld device or a continuous electronic monitor.

A device that records the fetal heart rate and the mother's contractions during pregnancy and labor.

A blood test that measures fibrinogen, a protein made by the liver that the body turns into fibrin to form clots.

A solution that preserves cells or tissue in a stable state so a pathologist can examine them later; formalin is the most common.

Imaging during surgery in which a fluorescent dye, usually indocyanine green, glows under near-infrared light to show blood flow and other structures.

An x-ray method that shows moving pictures of the inside of the body in real time.

A blood test that measures folate (folic acid), a B vitamin needed to make red blood cells and DNA.

A blood test for the active, unbound form of thyroxine, the main thyroid hormone.

Tissue that the pathologist freezes, slices thin and examines at once while the patient is still in surgery, to guide the operation.