Genova diagnostics blood draw locations pdf#

That doesn’t mean they’re not there, or that they’re harmless, it just means that there’s no known NAME to attach to them. Sometimes, microbial analysis will return abnormal yeasts, or parasites that cannot be classified. Yes, indeed! We heard this directly FROM THEM. Perhaps the most disturbing is the fact that regarding that stool test, Genova is now going to do away with certain types of abnormal results and report them as “negative/normal” instead. All of the changes in the above paragraph were made to the Metametrix version of the test.

Genova outright lied to its clients, promising that they would. Second, they’re substituting inferior culture-based methods where superior PCR-based methods used to be. Now, if you want to test for those infections (which are common and you don’t dare NOT test for them!), they cost extra. First, they decided to “split off” the four major pathogenic bacteria from the original panel. They fundamentally changed Metametrix’s stool analysis test in several ways. Genova raised the prices on ALL of their testing – some prices didn’t go up much, while others became downright cost-prohibitive.

Genova diagnostics blood draw locations pdf#

(There are ways to obtain this article – dump the URL of the PDF article into a website called the Wayback Machine and get it anyway!) Of course, now that Genova has taken over and since Genova does culture and not PCR, they couldn’t have a disparaging article circulating out there. Back when Metametrix and Genova were bitter competitors (don’t worry, Metametrix, you were far better all along), Metametrix wrote an article comparing the superior PCR microbial testing to the inferior culture-based testing. Helpful informational articles on various tests have disappeared. Policies got enacted or changed, major popular tests got *fundamentally* changed, and prices got increased, all without any prior notice. Their communication and documentation have been CRAP. They were hesitant, and it appears that they want to get rid of them altogether, outside of the ION super-panel. We had to call for test codes and pricing. They left Metametrix’s (better) version of the Amino Acids panels off the revised and integrated price list. They discontinued the Male Hormone Panel, something I found quite useful. This sentiment grew a little more, um… intense… after talking with the lab directly. So I started poking around my pools of colleagues, and found that they shared my same sentiment. However, when you start discontinuing tests or changing up the remaining tests, those of us depending on you get a little perturbed. Sure, we appreciate the increased insurance coverage and all that. They began changing things, and not for the better. It was as if they said, “Now that you’re mine and you have nowhere else to go…” Genova behaved itself for the duration of that year, appearing to listen a lot (to us docs, who were not shy with our comments) and changing little (another relief, because Metametrix’s tests were fantastic just as they were, with little need for alteration).Īlmost as soon as the door had closed behind Metametrix’s exiting owners, however, Genova took over like a tyrant. The labs underwent about a year-long transitional period beginning in summer 2012, in which the retiring owners of Metametrix agreed to stay on for 1 year to ensure a smooth transition and harmonious blend between the marrying labs. However, our gut intuition told us otherwise, and it turns out we were right.

As Princess Leia from Star Wars would gravely say, “I have a bad feeling about this.” But, trying to think happy thoughts, we went with the flow, praying that the merger would take the best of both labs and produce a wonderful hybrid. Practically every good Functional Medicine doctor began a journey on eggshells. Unfortunately, the lab using the inferior technologies (Genova Diagnostics) bought out the other lab (Metametrix Clinical Labs), due to Metametrix’s owners/directors aspiring to retire. One utilized the DNA-based PCR method, which is highly superior, while the other utilized the standard culture method, which misses a lot. Both labs offered a similar panel, but their methods differed greatly. The most pivotal test offered between the two labs is the comprehensive stool analysis. The overlap, however, was not perfect duplication – for example, both labs claimed to offer amino acids testing, but one analyzed urinary output, while the other took a direct blood measurement. They each offered some unique test profiles, but there was also a lot of overlap between the two. Once upon a time, there were two major functional/specialty diagnostic laboratories.