Hormones and Endocrine Tests
The Tests (15)
Aldosterone Renin Ratio
Compares two blood hormones that control salt and blood pressure, used to screen for primary aldosteronism; many blood-pressure drugs can distort the result.
Read the deep dive →Testosterone
Measures total, free and bioavailable testosterone in blood, used to evaluate low testosterone in men and excess androgens in women, as in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Read the deep dive →Adrenocorticotropic Hormone Stimulation Test
Blood cortisol is measured before and after an injection of synthetic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), the standard test for diagnosing adrenal insufficiency such as Addison's disease.
Read the deep dive →AMH
A blood hormone from growing ovarian follicles, used to estimate a woman's remaining egg supply; unlike follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), it stays fairly stable across the cycle.
Read the deep dive →Parathyroid Hormone
Measures the parathyroid glands' calcium-regulating hormone, read alongside blood calcium to sort out hyperparathyroidism, hypoparathyroidism and kidney-related bone problems.
Read the deep dive →Cortisol Test
The adrenal stress hormone, measured in blood, saliva or urine to check for Cushing's or Addison's disease; levels swing widely through the day.
Read the deep dive →Hormone Panel
Groups cortisol, DHEA-S, testosterone, estradiol, progesterone, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone (LH), insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) to look at adrenal, reproductive and metabolic hormones side by side.
Read the deep dive →Thyroid Panel
Combines thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free T4, free T3, reverse T3 and thyroid antibodies to trace hormone production, conversion and autoimmunity rather than relying on thyroid-stimulating hormone alone.
Read the deep dive →Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone
The pituitary's signal to the thyroid and the most-ordered thyroid blood test; it runs opposite to thyroid output, and high-dose biotin can distort it.
Read the deep dive →DHEA S
The body's most abundant adrenal steroid and a precursor to sex hormones, used to assess adrenal function and polycystic ovary syndrome; it declines steeply with age.
Read the deep dive →Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1
A liver-made blood hormone that serves as a steady stand-in for growth hormone, used to investigate acromegaly or deficiency; results are read against age.
Read the deep dive →Beta hCG
Blood test measuring the exact amount of the placenta's pregnancy hormone, used to date early pregnancy and flag ectopic pregnancy or miscarriage.
Read the deep dive →SHBG
A liver protein that carries sex hormones in blood, used to work out free testosterone; low levels can signal insulin resistance early.
Read the deep dive →Anti TPO Antibodies
Looks for antibodies the immune system aims at the thyroid, helping show whether a thyroid problem is autoimmune, as in Hashimoto's or Graves' disease.
Read the deep dive →Reverse T3
Measures reverse T3, an inactive look-alike of thyroid hormone that rises in serious illness; specialists and integrative practitioners disagree about when it is useful.
Read the deep dive →Thyroid, adrenal, pituitary and sex hormones, plus the stimulation tests used when a single level is not enough to interpret.