Back to list. Specimen Requirements This test can be performed on either a blood specimen or buccal cheek cell swab. Patient Preparation The patient does not need to fast for this test if a blood sample is required.
Turnaround Time The standard turnaround time for this test is business days. Payment Blood: No prepayment is required. Patient will be billed once the testing is completed. Swab: Prepayment is required when ordering kit. Code MFF Test Results Patient results are delivered to the referring practitioner via electronic download unless requested otherwise. But some genetic tests are unnecessary. Learn more about vaccine availability.
Advertising Policy. You have successfully subscribed to our newsletter. D Advertising Policy. Related Articles. Trending Topics. You may feel a little sting when the needle goes in or out. This usually takes less than five minutes. For a newborn screening, a health care professional will clean your baby's heel with alcohol and poke the heel with a small needle. He or she will collect a few drops of blood and put a bandage on the site.
Testing is most often done when a baby is 1 to 2 days old, usually in the hospital where he or she was born. If your baby wasn't born in the hospital or if you have left the hospital before the baby could be tested, talk to your health care provider about scheduling testing as soon as possible.
You may have slight pain or bruising at the spot where the needle was put in, but most symptoms go away quickly. Your baby may feel a little pinch when the heel is poked, and a small bruise may form at the site. This should go away quickly. If positive, the result will show which of the two mutations you have, and whether you have one or two copies of the mutated gene. If your results were negative, but you have high homocysteine levels, your health care provider may order more tests to find out the cause.
B vitamins can help bring your homocysteine levels back to normal. Learn more about laboratory tests, reference ranges, and understanding results. Some health care providers choose to only test for homocysteine levels, rather than doing a MTHFR gene test. That is because treatment is often the same, whether or not high homocysteine levels are caused by a mutation.
Gene mutations are inherited, which means you acquire them from your parents. If both have mutations, your risk of having a homozygous mutation is higher. Symptoms vary from person to person and from variant to variant. Evidence linking most of these health conditions to MTHFR is currently lacking or has been disproven. The risk is possibly increased if a person has two gene variants or is homozygous for the MTHFR mutation.
Consider visiting your doctor and discussing the pros and cons of being tested. Keep in mind that genetic testing may not be covered by your insurance. It could just mean you need to take a vitamin B supplement. Treatment is typically required when you have very high homocysteine levels, almost always above the level attributed to most MTHFR variants. Your doctor should rule out other possible causes of increased homocysteine, which can occur with or without MTHFR variants.
In these cases, your doctor may suggest supplementation to address deficiencies along with medications or treatments to address the specific health condition. People with MTHFR mutations may also wish to take preventive measures to lower their homocysteine levels. One preventive measure is changing certain lifestyle choices, which may help without the use of medications.
Examples include:.
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