Csf Glucose Test To Measure Sugar (glucose) In Cerebrospinal Fluid (csf)

By Author: Dr Andrew Napier
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CSF glucose test is to measure sugar (glucose) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). This is a test of its kind, done with a lot of caution to stem out the likelihood of damaging results of high sugar level in the nervous system and the body in general. The cerebrospinal fluid is an important media that allow interconnectivity and transmission of many forms of communication all over the body. It is a fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord; it acts as a shock absorber of the central nervous system. It feeds the nerves and cleans up by removing waste products via the blood stream. It is a clear, colorless fluid; and rich in that it has many components from electrolytes to amino acids. In between, is the backbone or vertebra running from the neck to the waist and supporting other branches like the ribs and the pelvic region.

Why extract fluid and test glucose in such a rare area? The chemical stability of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and the surrounding is determined by the chemistry of all components; and sugar is one of the components that must be tested and results used to confirm absence or presence of any infection. As ...
... expected, there is a standard measure of glucose in CSF beyond which a red flag will be noted, meaning something is wrong. It is just one of the many diagnostic procedures employed to check glucose concentration.

The normal level of glucose is lower than the level in the blood stream; the range is between 50 and 80 mg/100ml of CSF. Lower or higher levels shows an indication of may be an inflammation of the nervous system, presence of a tumor or bacterial infection and many other possibilities as you know the brain is the centre of every action in the body. Certain strains of tuberculosis or fungal infection or bacterial infection are often associated with reduced CSF glucose. In this discussion therefore increased CSF glucose is a sign of high blood sugar; automatically implying diabetes has landed. This is another formula of circumventing the normal direct blood sugar tests that takes you to the same results.

Extraction of this fluid is rather cumbersome and painful sometimes; and a patient might find it awkward. A process called lumbar puncture is done, by inserting small needles that puncture the surface in between the vertebra and extract the fluid in a period of between 20 and 30 minutes using a syringe. It is no layman's duty, it requires an expert technician and may even require anesthesia. Cooperation is important between the patient and the health staff. It is known to cause hemorrhages, brain injury and even irreversible brain damage sometimes if done carelessly. Being a delicate procedure, bacteria often gets in by chance and may cause meningitis, thus endangering would be cases of this test. Lumbar puncture is done by inserting the needle around the fifth lumbar. Expert medical staffs, take care of the patient all through providing additional after care support of sterile bandages, calming down and monitoring for over 20 minutes. In summary, this process is only done when all other options have been considered and put aside.

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