Should The BNP Blood Test Be Repeated At Each Visit To My Doctor, Or At All?
Question: Should the BNP blood test be repeated at each visit to my doctor, or at all?
Answer: So the BNP test is a blood test that's helpful to the doctor treating the patient with congestive heart failure. It does not need to be repeated on a regular basis in most patients.
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There might be an occasional patient in which the physician might wish to repeat it more regularly. For example, a patient who has an unusual form of heart disease that could be rapidly changing -- the physician might elect to measure it regularly.
Most patients however only need to have the test done really once in the beginning of their presentation with congestive heart failure, and perhaps the doctor would like to measure it every year or every other year would be reasonable, but not on a regular basis -- certainly not on every visit to your doctor.
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