The procedure is very safe and poses few risks. People who take the test may feel a slight sting when the needle pricks the arm. Some people may bleed slightly where the needle pierces the skin, and others may feel temporarily faint or dizzy. After the test, people may get a small bruise at the puncture site or experience mild soreness in the arm, which can last for a few days. In more sensitive people, this bruising may turn into a hematoma. People with abnormal ESR values may not always have a medical condition that requires treatment.
Slightly higher levels can also occur due to pregnancy, menstruation, or advancing age. People taking certain medications, such as oral contraceptives, cortisone, aspirin , and vitamin A, may also have unusual test results.
In cases where a non-medical cause or underlying medical condition may be affecting the test result, doctors usually order a second ESR test and other types of test to help make a diagnosis. If the doctor concludes that someone does have a medical condition, they are likely to prescribe a treatment specific to the condition.
Treatment may involve:. An ESR test result outside of the normal range is not necessarily a cause for concern. There are some non-medical causes of abnormal results. Although doctors cannot diagnose a specific medical condition with an ESR test, the result can establish whether or not there is inflammation in the body. If the test indicates that there may be an issue, doctors will need to order further tests and get additional clinical information to make an accurate diagnosis.
Sickle cell disease is an inherited condition that can have life threatening consequences. Learn more about what it involves and the treatment options…. Anemia is the most common blood disorder. ESR doesn't tell your healthcare provider whether you have a specific disease. It only suggests that you may have an active disease process in your body. You may have other tests if your healthcare provider is doing this test to diagnose a disease.
One of these tests is call C-reactive protein, or CRP. This test also measures active inflammation in the body. Your provider may do an ESR alone if he or she is monitoring a disease you already have. Because ESR tells your provider only what is happening right now, you may need to have the test repeated over time. Test results may vary depending on your age, gender, health history, the method used for the test, and other things.
Your test results may not mean you have a problem. Ask your healthcare provider what your test results mean for you. For instance, you may have:. The test is done with a blood sample. A needle is used to draw blood from a vein in your arm or hand. Having a blood test with a needle carries some risks.
These include bleeding, infection, bruising, and feeling lightheaded. When the needle pricks your arm or hand, you may feel a slight sting or pain. The higher the ESR level, the higher the inflammation [ 5 , 26 , 3 ]. The ESR test cannot diagnose diseases, but it can track the progress of specific conditions [ 44 ]:. ESR levels higher than normal may predict cancer or cancer progression, like metastasis [ 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 ]. Children should have an ESR lower than 10mm [ 3 ].
A low ESR is normal and does not cause any symptoms [ 25 ]. Technical errors during the test such as a tilted tube or dilution error can also give a false high ESR result [ 3 ]. High fibrinogen levels make the red blood cells heavier and increase the ESR. So, genes increasing fibrinogen production could theoretically increase ESR levels. These include:. Low fibrinogen levels make the red blood cells lighter and decrease the ESR.
So, genes decreasing fibrinogen production may theoretically reduce ESR levels:. In inflammation, the liver is producing a protein called C-reactive protein CRP. The CRP blood test checks whether you have inflammation or infection. CRP is better for checking and tracking the progress of acute inflammations, and infections [ 25 , , ]. ESR is better for checking and tracking the progress of chronic inflammations, and infections [ 25 , , ].
While there are many studies examining ESR, almost all of them are population-based, which means they can associate high or low ESR values with certain conditions but not establish them as their cause. Additional limitations of some of these studies include being based on older data or only conducted with men.
It is most commonly measured using the Westergren method, the gold standard in assessing ESR. Micro ESR is another method that can be used in newborns that requires only a small amount of blood. Your doctor may order an ESR test if you show signs or symptoms of infection or inflammation, such as fever, headache, and pain. They may also order this test to screen for specific diseases or to monitor chronic autoimmune diseases like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
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