Monitoring Cystic Fibrosis

Certain tests can help your doctor monitor your child's cystic fibrosis. These tests include:

• Lung function tests to find out how healthy the lungs are by checking how well air moves into and out of the lungs.
• A throat culture or sputum culture to see what kinds of bacteria are causing any infections your child may have.
• A chest X-ray to take a picture of the chest, including the heart and lungs.
• A CT scan to find any serious disease in the lungs, pancreas, or other organs.
• Blood tests, such as glucose (blood sugar) level and liver function. These tests are to see if there are any complications of cystic fibrosis.
• A stool analysis to see how well your child is absorbing and digesting fat and other nutrients.
• An arterial blood gas analysis to measure the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood. This test shows how well the lungs are working.

Article Referenced from WebMD