How to read your report

Three habits make a report useful instead of alarming: read the pattern, read the conditions, and keep the previous one.

The report is organized by body system

Not by machine. Circulation, small nerve fibers, autonomic function, body composition, metabolism, balance and cognition each get a section, and each section answers a different question. Understanding your results sets out what each one asks.

Habit one: read across sections, not down one

The most useful information is almost always in a combination. Reduced conductance in the feet plus a reduced toe index plus dry, cracked skin is a specific picture with a specific action attached. Any one of those three on its own is much less informative.

The same is true in the other direction. A normal ankle-brachial index next to a damped waveform is not a contradiction — it usually means the arteries are too calcified to compress, and the waveform is the one telling the truth.

Habit two: read the conditions along with the numbers

Every page should carry the conditions the measurements were taken under: whether you fasted, whether you had caffeine or nicotine, how you slept, whether you had alcohol the night before, the time of day, and your medication list. Those are not footnotes. Several of them move the results more than mild disease would.

Habit three: keep it, and bring it next time

The single most valuable output of this suite is the comparison between one assessment and the next. That only works if somebody kept the first one. Ask for a copy every time and keep them together.

What should I do if a result is abnormal?

Do not act on it alone. Read it against the rest of the report and against the conditions.
If it is borderline, expect it to be repeated under controlled conditions before it changes anything.
If it is clearly abnormal and consistent with the rest of the picture, that is the conversation to have with a clinician who knows your history.
Never stop or change a medication because a number looked wrong.

What should I do with a normal report?

Keep it. A complete normal baseline in a person in the risk group is exactly what makes a future measurement interpretable, and it is the most common outcome for someone who comes in early rather than late.

Frequently asked questions

How should I interpret my test results?

Use three habits. Read across sections rather than down one, because the most useful information is usually a combination of findings. Read the testing conditions along with the numbers. And keep your previous report, because comparing one assessment with the next is the most valuable thing the testing produces. Then go over it with a clinician who knows your history.

Can caffeine, food or sleep change my test results?

Yes. Whether you fasted, had caffeine or nicotine, slept poorly or drank alcohol the night before, plus the time of day and your medications, can all move the results. Several of them move the numbers more than mild disease would. That is why each page of the report should record the conditions the measurements were taken under.

Should I keep my old test reports?

Yes. The single most valuable output of the testing is the comparison between one assessment and the next, and that only works if somebody kept the first report. Ask for a copy every time, keep them together and bring them with you to your next assessment so the new numbers can be read against the old ones.