Clinic appointment
Bone Health Check
Calcium, phosphate and vitamin D, the blood markers involved in bone health, alongside kidney and liver markers that can affect how the body handles them.
- Doctor-reviewed results
- Laboratory analysis
- 1 to 2 working days from lab receipt
- No fasting required
What’s included
17 markers measured
All items are shown below, grouped by area. You can collapse a group as you read.
Kidney & salt balance
Sodium
One of the body's electrolytes, the salts and minerals in the blood that help carry electrical signals. It is checked in an electrolyte test to look for an imbalance, for example in people taking diuretics or ACE inhibitors for high blood pressure.
Potassium
A mineral held mostly inside the body's cells. Small shifts in its level affect how muscles contract, including the heart, and it is vital for the heart's electrical signals and for fluid balance. The kidneys are the main route by which the body gets rid of potassium.
Chloride
One of the electrolytes, the salts and minerals in the blood (along with sodium, potassium and bicarbonate) that help conduct electrical impulses in the body. It is measured in an electrolyte panel, which can show whether salts, or acid and base, are out of balance.
Bicarbonate
Part of the system that keeps your blood from becoming too acidic or too alkaline. Read alongside the other salts rather than on its own.
Urea
Urea is checked together with sodium, potassium and creatinine to assess how well the kidneys are working and the body's fluid balance.
Creatinine
A waste product measured in the blood as the main test for kidney disease. Combined with age and sex, it is used to work out eGFR, an estimate of how much the kidneys can filter each minute. A lower eGFR can point to chronic kidney disease.
Liver
Bilirubin
A breakdown product of haem from red blood cells, which the liver processes so it can be passed out in bile. A raised level can come from extra red blood cell breakdown, liver disease or a blocked bile duct, and can lead to jaundice.
Total protein
Measures the total amount of protein in the blood. A low level can point to a liver or kidney problem, or to protein not being digested or absorbed well; a high level can reflect dehydration or a cancer such as multiple myeloma. Further tests show which proteins are out of range.
Alkaline phosphatase
Alkaline phosphatase, one of the standard liver function tests. A raised level, especially with a raised GGT, suggests a problem with bile flow (cholestasis), such as a blocked bile duct. Bone disease and low vitamin D can also raise it.
Albumin
The main protein your liver makes. It is a useful marker of the liver's longer-term output.
Globulin
Serum globulins, a group of blood proteins. Levels can rise in long-term liver inflammation (chronic hepatitis) and in cirrhosis.
ALT
Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) is one of the standard liver blood tests. A raised level mainly points to injury to liver cells, which can be caused by viral hepatitis, fatty liver disease, alcohol, autoimmune hepatitis or some medicines. Its pattern alongside the other liver tests helps show the likely type of liver problem.
AST
Aspartate transaminase, a liver test read together with ALT. A pattern where AST and ALT are the main raised liver tests points to liver cell damage, for example from viral hepatitis, fatty liver disease, alcohol or medicines. The balance between AST and ALT gives clues to the cause.
Gamma GT
A liver enzyme that is more sensitive than ALT or AST to alcohol, some medicines and fatty change in the liver.
Bone & minerals
Calcium
A mineral that helps build bones and keep teeth healthy, controls how muscles contract (including the heartbeat) and helps blood to clot normally.
Phosphate
Measures phosphate, a chemical containing the mineral phosphorus. The body needs it to make energy, for muscles and nerves to work, and for bones to grow. It is checked in malnutrition, diabetic ketoacidosis and digestive conditions that affect absorption, and is monitored closely in chronic kidney disease.
Vitamins
Vitamin D (25-OH)
Your vitamin D store, which supports bone, muscle and immune health. Low levels are common in the UK, especially from January to March.
Overview
The blood side of bone chemistry: calcium, phosphate and vitamin D, read alongside the kidney and liver markers that can affect how the body handles them. People choose it when osteoporosis runs in the family, after long-term steroid treatment, after an early menopause, or when a doctor has raised bone health with them. It does not measure bone strength.
Gives a doctor the blood-side picture of bone chemistry, since calcium and vitamin D levels are read in the context of kidney and liver function rather than in isolation.
Who this is for and who it isn’t
Who it’s for
- Adults aged 18 and over
- Women after the menopause and anyone with a family history of osteoporosis
- People on long-term steroids or with low vitamin D
Who it isn’t for
- Bone strength is measured with a DEXA scan, not a blood test, and this panel does not assess bone density or fracture risk. It gives your doctor the blood chemistry that sits behind bone health. If you have had a fracture from a minor fall, see your GP, who can consider a DEXA referral.
- Anyone with a new, severe or worsening symptom: contact your GP or call NHS 111. A test you buy today is not a substitute for being examined.
Common reasons people choose this test
- A family history of osteoporosis or hip fracture
- Taking steroid tablets for three months or more
- Early menopause, or periods stopping before 45
- Wanting vitamin D and calcium checked together
These are reasons people choose to test, not signs that something is wrong. A result is one part of a picture your doctor puts together with your history and an examination.
What your result looks like
Every result is shown with the unit and the reference range exactly as the laboratory reported it, with the doctor’s note underneath.
- Sodium▼ Low
- Result
- 131 mmol/L
- Range
- 133–146
- PotassiumIn range
- Result
- 4.2 mmol/L
- Range
- 3.5–5.3
- ChlorideIn range
- Result
- 101 mmol/L
- Range
- 95–108
| Marker | Result | Units | Range | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sodium | 131 | mmol/L | 133–146 | ▼ Low |
| Potassium | 4.2 | mmol/L | 3.5–5.3 | In range |
| Chloride | 101 | mmol/L | 95–108 | In range |
Doctor’s note (example)
Sodium is slightly low. Drinking a lot of fluid, some blood pressure tablets and antidepressants all lower it; it is repeated before anything else is done.
…and 14 more markers. Values above are examples. Your report shows your own results with the laboratory’s units and reference range for your age and sex, reviewed, signed and released by a GMC-registered doctor.
How it works
- You book your appointmentA trained clinician takes your sample at one of our London clinics. Nothing to do at home.
- The clinician takes your sampleA single clinic blood draw by a trained clinician
- The laboratory analyses itYour sample is processed for the measurements included in this test. Lab processing typically takes 1 to 2 working days from receipt of your sample.
- A doctor reviews and releases itA GMC-registered doctor reads every result and signs the report before it reaches you.
- Sample
- Clinic blood draw
- Preparation
- No fasting required
- Who it's for
- Any sex · ages 18+
How to prepare
What we can and can’t tell you
The reference range beside each result is the laboratory’s own. A result in range is not a clean bill of health and a result outside it is not a diagnosis. Most ranges cover about 95% of healthy people, so about 1 in 20 healthy people fall just outside any one range. No test result replaces an examination or your own doctor’s judgement, and none of these panels is a cancer screening programme.
Read the full note
The reference range printed beside each of your results is the laboratory's own, and it is the range that applies to your result. We do not apply a second range of our own, and we do not tell you that a result the laboratory reported as normal is nonetheless too low or too high. If you see a claim elsewhere that your result ought to sit inside a narrower band than the one the laboratory printed, treat it with caution and ask your doctor.
Some assays cannot give an exact figure above or below a certain point, and those results are reported the way the laboratory sends them, for example as a value greater than a stated number. A result in range is not a clean bill of health, and a result outside a range is not a diagnosis: most reference ranges are set to cover about 95% of healthy people, so some healthy people fall just outside them. No blood test replaces an examination, a scan or your own doctor's judgement, and none of these panels is a screening programme for cancer.
If you have a symptom that is new, severe, or getting worse, contact your GP or NHS 111 rather than waiting for a test result. In an emergency call 999.
Frequently asked questions
Does this tell me whether I have osteoporosis?
No. Osteoporosis is assessed with a DEXA bone density scan. This panel measures the blood chemistry involved in bone health, which a doctor reads alongside a scan and your history rather than instead of them.
Why are kidney and liver results included?
Kidney and liver function can affect how the body handles calcium and vitamin D, so a calcium result is read alongside them rather than in isolation.
How long do results take?
The laboratory typically takes 1 to 2 working days from receiving your sample. This does not include kit delivery, sample collection or return postage. A doctor reviews your results before they are released.
Can I choose a home kit or a clinic?
This test is a clinic blood draw, as it needs a venous sample for accuracy. We arrange a convenient appointment for you.
Is a doctor involved?
Yes. Every result is reviewed by a GMC-registered doctor who signs it off and explains what it means and what to do next.
Is it confidential?
Your results are available through your secure patient portal. Our privacy policy explains how your information is handled and when it may be shared to provide your care.
What happens to my sample and results?
Your sample is analysed at a UKAS-accredited laboratory (ISO 15189). A GMC-registered doctor then reads every result and signs the report before it is released, so nothing reaches you unreviewed. There is no option to receive results without a doctor reading them first. The report arrives in your secure portal in plain English: each result with its unit and the laboratory's own reference range, and the doctor's note on what the set means read together. If a result sits outside its range the report says so and explains what usually happens next, which is most often a conversation with your own GP, who can act on it alongside your history and examination. Most reference ranges are set to cover about 95% of healthy people, so about 1 in 20 healthy people fall just outside any one of them. On a report with many results it is common for one to sit just outside its range, and a single number on its own rarely tells the whole story. If a result needs urgent attention, the reviewing doctor is alerted straight away and we contact you by phone the same working day rather than leaving it in the portal for you to find. If a specific result needs rechecking, the reviewing doctor says so in your report.
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