A phosphate test measures the amount of phosphate in your blood. If that sounds too simple, stay tuned for a slight curveball.
Phosphate is what you get when you combine the mineral phosphorus with oxygen. When you eat certain foods -- such as beans, nuts, cereal, milk, eggs, beef, chicken, and fish -- phosphorous enters your intestines. When it meets up with oxygen, it becomes phosphate.
Most phosphates team up with calcium to build and repair your bones and teeth. Some support your muscles and nerves.
Here's where things get tricky: When it comes to testing, phosphorus is sometimes called phosphate and vice versa. Don’t let all those “ph-ph” words confuse you.
Why Do I Need a Test?
Though you absorb phosphate in the intestines, it's filtered and removed through your kidneys.
Abnormal phosphate levels -- with symptoms such as bone problems, fatigue and weakness -- may point to a kidney disorder. Your doctor may also want you to get a phosphate test if they suspect:
- Issues with diabetes
- Hormone imbalances, such as Vitamin D or PTH, a hormone that helps balance calcium and phosphorus in your body
- Malnourishment
Since phosphate works so closely with calcium, doctors also use the test to determine whether your body is getting and using calcium the right way. Issues related to calcium can be a sign of low vitamin D, or they may include:
- Bone problems
- Feeling very tired
- Muscle weakness
- Cramping
How Should I Prepare for It?
Your doctor will give you instructions; follow them carefully.
You may be asked not to eat anything from midnight before the test until after the test is over.
Make sure your doctor knows about everything you're taking, including prescription and over-the-counter medicine, herbal supplements, vitamins, and recreational or illegal drugs.
What Happens During the Test?
After cleaning the skin on part of your arm, a technician will insert a needle into one of your veins. They may wrap an elastic band around the upper part of your arm to make that vein easier to find.
Once enough blood goes into a tube, the technician will take off the band, pull out the needle, and stop the bleeding with a cotton ball or bandage. They’ll label the tube of blood, and it will be sent to a lab.
With any blood test, you may feel:
- Pain when the needle is inserted
- Dizziness
- Soreness or bruising
- Bleeding
What Can Affect My Test Results?
If you've had dialysis, it may affect your phosphate levels, as can some medicines. Some things you eat and drink might have an effect, too, so check with your doctor about whether avoid these before the test:
- Beans (many different kinds)
- Beer
- Cheese
- Chocolate
- Cola
- Fish
What Do My Test Results Mean?
When the results are too high or too low, it's a sign that something's not right.
If your phosphate levels are low, it may be a sign of:
- Alcoholism
- Severe burns
- Diabetic ketoacidosis (too much acid in the blood)
- Overuse of diuretics (drugs that remove excess fluid from the body)
- Using too much antacid
- Hypercalcemia (too much calcium in your blood)
- Hyperparathyroidism (high levels of the parathyroid hormone)
- Malnutrition
- Vitamin D deficiency conditions, such as rickets
High phosphate levels may indicate:
- Hypoparathyroidism (low levels of the parathyroid hormone)
- Cardiovascular disease (disorders of the blood vessels or heart)
- Cell lysis
- Laxative overuse
- Liver disease
- Kidney failure or injury
- Osteoporosis (condition that causes brittle and weak bones)
- Vitamin D overuse
What Other Tests Might I Have?
Your doctor may give you other tests along with the phosphate blood test to help narrow down their diagnosis. These can include tests for:
- Calcium
- Vitamin D
- PTH (hormone produced by the parathyroid gland)