|  | Conditions Treatments | Cholesterol

How to Test Cholesterol Levels

Testing your cholesterol levels is an important part of maintaining a healthy cardiovascular system and overall health. Your test results indicate the health and efficacy of your heart and relative blood vessels and may indicate the likelihood that a heart attack or stroke could occur. Getting your cholesterol tested is a fairly easy process that requires either a quick trip to the doctor's office or an at-home cholesterol test that you can purchase from a drug store.

Things You'll Need

  • At-home cholesterol test kit
  • Lancet
  • Cotton ball
  • Rubbing alcohol
  • Small bandage
Show More

Instructions

  1. Testing at Home

    • 1

      Wash your hands with warm water and soap and dry them thoroughly. Choose a finger to use for the test--pointer or middle fingers work best.

    • 2

      Clean the pad of the fingertip with a cotton ball dipped in rubbing alcohol. Some testing kits contain an alcohol pad. If yours contains one of these, you can use it in place of the cotton ball.

    • 3

      Use the lancet in the kit to prick a small hole in your finger. (Most tests provide a one-time-use lancet.) Squeeze the finger gently until a drop or two of blood secretes from the opening. Use the test strip supplied in the cholesterol screening kit to absorb the blood in the direction indicated on the strip.

    • 4

      Insert the strip into the cholesterol screening device that came with your home testing kit, as indicated. Results can take up to 15 minutes to display.

    • 5

      Note the results of the test and compare them with the chart located on the test kit's box or leaflet located inside the box. If you have unexpected results, schedule an appointment with your doctor.

    Testing at the Doctor's Office

    • 6

      Schedule an appointment with your primary care physician for a blood lipid panel, which is the cholesterol screening test.

    • 7

      Blood will be drawn via a blood vessel in your forearm by way of a small, hollow needle. Your doctor or nurse will draw one or more vials of blood to be tested. A bandage will be applied to the small wound.

    • 8

      Some offices offer in-house results, while other blood samples must be sent to a lab to be tested. You may receive your results the same day if your doctor has the equipment to test for cholesterol in his office; otherwise, it can take up to a week to get results.

    • 9

      Your doctor or a nurse will advise you of your options if the results are high. Medication, exercise and/or changes in diet may be advised.

Cholesterol - Related Articles