Osmolality - Serum
Understanding Osmolality - Serum
What is Osmolality - Serum?
Your body constantly loses water as you breathe, sweat, and urinate. When you don't drink enough water, your blood is enriched with chemicals, i.e., serum osmolality. The serum in your veins and arteries doesn't contain any blood cells.
Serum osmolality tests look for chemical imbalances in the blood; they measure the level of chemicals in the liquid part of the blood (serum). Several chemicals affect serum osmolality, including sodium, chloride, bicarbonate, proteins, and sugar (glucose).
A simple blood test is required for the test. Your doctor can use this test to diagnose many conditions, such as diabetes and hypernatremia, when your sodium levels are too low, and your body begins to retain fluid. This test is both time and cost-effective.
What is Osmolality - Serum used for?
The test checks the water balance of the body. The doctor orders the test if a patient shows symptoms like dehydration, low sodium level, problematic urination, poisoning from ethanol, ethylene glycol or methanol.