What Students Need To Know About The Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate ( ESR)

By taking and testing a small sample of a persons blood, doctors can check for many kinds of diseases and conditions. Blood tests help doctors check how the bodys organs are working and see if medical treatments are helpful. To help your child get ready for a blood test, find out if they need to fast (not eat or drink) or should stop taking medicines before the test. Explain what to expect during the test. If your child is anxious about it, work together on ways to stay calm. An ESR test measures how quickly red blood cells settle to the bottle of a test tube. Inflammation or infection can lead to extra proteins in the blood, which can make the red blood cells settle faster. When this happens, the ESR is higher. Doctors may order an ESR test if a child has signs of inflammation or infection. They use ESR tests to follow conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), arthritis, and lupus. ESR tests also can help doctors see how well treatment for inflammation or infection is working. Erythrocyte