Naturopathic Source

Many people who have tests done at their doctor are told that if they do not hear back, then the results were normal. This is not always the case. Lately I have had 3 patients who did not hear back after tests were performed. One of them found out that the hospital lost her test results and had to go back in; another patient was told that her test results were fine, when in fact, she had some abnormalities which need to be treated. And another patient had been told that a message for her to call the doctor's office, but she never got that message. In yet another case, a few years ago, I had a patient who told me she had been diagnosed with fibroids -- she was pretty sure. She had recently had some tests done and she was pretty sure that the results showed fibroids. She had the test results at home, and so I asked her to bring them in on her next visit. As it turned out, she did not have fibroids, but she had been diagnosed with three other conditions that she was not even aware of.

So, when you have tests done at your doctor's, my best advice is to always get a copy of them. If you are one of my patients, always bring them in to me so I can take a look at them and keep a copy in your file. If if there is anything that is borderline or abnormal, always, always make sure you understand the significance, or any potential significance of that result. It is an unacceptable but true reality, that from time to time, things (ie. people and test results) fall through the cracks; when someone is really busy, it is not difficult to accidentally overlook something. Make sure you are not just taking someone's word for it that everything is okay -- make sure you see for yourself.

TC