Organic acids present in urine (Metabolic Analysis Profile)
Test Details for Ordering | |
---|---|
Test | Organic acids present in urine (metabolic analysis profile) |
Laboratory | Genova Diagnostics |
Price | £210.00 |
Sample required | urine |
To order this test, please, go to Ordering Tests. Please, make sure you have read When not to use this website to ascertain whether having this test is an appropriate and safe course of action for you. |
[UPDATED APRIL 2022]
- UK clients - please use Royal Mail or the courier to return samples - YOU PAY FOR THIS YOURSELVES ie complete payment on the courier form if you wish to use the courier.
- Overseas clients - my Office will charge you a courier fee to ship the test kit to you and this will be billed along with the test kit, but you must organise and pay the courier return fee ie fill in payment on courier form.
All kits come with shipping instructions for returning the samples.
Here are the relevant Genova documents explaining the procedure:
DESCRIPTION
Urine contains a great number of waste products from the body and by analysing these one can learn an awful lot about what is going on in the internal workings of the body. It is a little bit like rummaging through the rubbish that has been thrown out of a house - that would tell you a great deal about what went on in that house with respect to the occupants' diet, work, hobbies, interests and so on. I have rather avoided doing urinary organic acids in the past because it supplies so much information about so many different substances that the interpretation was really very difficult. However, Genova Diagnostics have got their head around this problem and have listed all the amino acids, enzymes, breakdown products of metabolism, bacterial markers, detox enzymes and so on in such a way that it is much more clear what the problem is. Obviously there will be overlaps because many compounds do more than one job, but by packaging these together in groups it has become very much more obvious what is or is not going on.
Indeed I was interested to hear from Dr Chris Heard that this is a test he now does routinely in his autistic children - partly because it is non-invasive, i.e. no needles, and partly because there is a great deal of useful information that he can glean from this.
For example, the grouping together of twenty nine different measures of amino acids and waste products gives one a good idea about antioxidant status. Looking at fourteen other organic acids gives one a handle on mineral status. B6 status can be determined by looking at levels of sixteen different substances. So, through one test one can get a handle on antioxidants, minerals, B vitamins, protein malabsorption and maldigestion, bacterial dysbiosis, yeast fungal dysbiosis, nitrogen balance, detoxification ability, methylation ability, oxidative stress, neurotransmitter balance, markers of malabsorption and dysbiosis, markers of cellular energy and mitochondrial metabolites (from glycolosis, citric acid cycle, ketones and fatty acids), and organic acids for co-factor needs.
I anticipate using this test when I get stuck. There is probably little point in using it early on in the work up of any problem because "common things are common" and everybody has to do my basic work up. However, if we are not making progress then this could be a very useful test because it allows us to concentrate our efforts in certain areas.
SAMPLE
First morning urine samples ( 2 x 5ml tubes that the lab will provide to be filled).
KIT
The urine containers and instructions are sent out directly from the lab.
INSTRUCTIONS
- Patients should be fasting for 8-12 hours (water only), having drunk enough fluids to quench thirst on the day/evening prior to collection and bladder should be completely emptied the night before collection. Do not collect sample during menstruation. Discontinue supplementation (including creatine, alpha-ketoglutarate, malic acid; citrate, malate, or orotate form of minerals) 4 days prior to testing unless wishing to monitor therapy.
- Avoid eating all of the following foods for 24 hours prior to testing. : apples. plums, prunes, cherries, cranberries, grapes, pineapple, fruit juices, bananas, rhubarb, plaintain, kiwi, raisins, tomatoes, avocado, walnuts, pecans, butternuts, hickory nuts, soda pop, wine, cream of tartar (check labels on baked goods), benzoate (preservative) and sweetener.
- Please, note that there is an interpretation fee for my letter to your GP. See Ordering Tests for more details.