Guide to Endocrine Tests

Our bodies produce hormones, which are chemicals that control our bodily activities, like when to grow and when to stop growing.

Most of our hormones are made in ‘glands’ situated in our bodies and the hormones travel around our blood stream; others are made in our organs, such as the stomach.

Endocrine tests are designed to check the levels of certain hormones within our bodies. Sometimes we have too much or not enough.

Depending on which test you’re having, you:

• may require a number of blood tests taken at regular intervals.  To make this easier, a cannula will be put in place first, and subsequent samples taken from there.
• may require an injection or to drink a particular liquid to help facilitate the test.
• might have to ‘fast’ for a number of hours before the test. The nurse or doctor will notify you and your parent or carer if this is needed.

The test can take a couple of hours to complete, but you can play or relax between sample collections.

The samples will be sent off to the pathology lab, and they will look at the particular increasing or decreasing hormone levels your body is producing.

There is a long list of different types of endocrine tests, please speak to your nurse about your particular test for further information.