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| Hormone testing for sex hormones such as estrogens, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA, LH, FSH, prolactin and binding globulins (SHBG) is an important step in determining hormone abnormalities that may be causing or contributing to symptoms. Deciding which of these tests to perform requires your doctor's assistance and understanding of the nature of your complaint. Function Blood, saliva, and urine tests are available. An advantage of salivary testing in women is that samples can be taken and frozen over a period of time and then collectively tested for hormone levels and patterns. Salivary testing is not useful for follow-up testing when transdermal hormone creams are used: reported values are falsely elevated. Directions 24-hour urinary testing is a good method of determining hormone levels, both initially and for follow-up. Your doctor can advise you when it is best collect the sample. |