Cholesterol Screening Made Simple

Considering the life-saving information it can provide, getting a lipid panel test is incredibly quick and simple. In fact, it may take you longer to park your car than to get your blood lipids screened.

In order to do a blood-lipid-screening test, a single sample of your blood will be drawn with a needle and analyzed. Some tests obtain a blood sample from a finger prick, but these samples are less reliable. Most tests are readily available in doctors’ offices and hospitals, at health fairs, and even in drugstores. Test results may take a couple of days, but sometimes longer, to return.

Typically, there is no special preparation involved in getting a lipid-panel test. You should fast for 12 hours before the blood draw.

If you have a screening test when you are ill, losing weight, pregnant, or breastfeeding, your test may not produce blood lipid values that are representative of your usual levels.