Laboratory Medicine Decoded: Interpretation of Lab Values from Basic to Advanced

In the catheterisation laboratory and on the ward I have seen laboratory results decide the course of a patient as often as any angiogram — the troponin that triggers an invasive strategy, the creatinine that limits contrast, the platelet count and anti-Xa level that shape antithrombotic therapy. I wrote Laboratory Medicine Decoded: Interpretation of Lab Values from Basic to Advanced because interpretation is the skill that sits between the number and the decision, and it is rarely taught systematically.

Inside the book

This International Edition is 2,370 pages long, with 105 chapters in 17 parts and eight appendices. It starts with how laboratories work and how results should be read — reference intervals, decision limits, units, probability, biological variation, interferences and specimen problems. It then covers every major organ system: blood and coagulation, electrolytes and acid–base, kidney, liver and pancreas, the heart, endocrine glands and metabolism, infection, immunology, body fluids, cancer, and critical care, toxicology and transfusion. The final parts apply this to individual specialties, genetics and pharmacogenomics, standard test profiles, pattern recognition, misleading results and critical values, ending with 100 integrated clinical cases.

How each chapter teaches

Learning objectives at the start; key points, five single-best-answer questions with explanations and up-to-date references at the end. Clinical Pearls, Caution boxes, Key Trial summaries and Case Vignettes throughout. All values appear in SI units with conventional units in brackets, so readers anywhere in the world can use it directly.

Who should read it

Physicians, surgeons, general practitioners, postgraduate students, nurses, laboratory professionals and anyone preparing for board examinations.

— Dr. A M Thirugnanam, MD, MSICP, FSCAI, Ph.D., Senior Interventional Cardiologist, Hyderabad, India

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