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r acid and fluid-base balance in your body. Chloride channels control the water amount and the type of nutrients and compounds that go in and out of cells. Chloride also helps the heart and muscles contract. It also enables nerve cells to carry messages between the body and the brain. This mineral is also needed to help RBC’s exchange carbon dioxide and oxygen in both the lungs and other body parts. Your kidneys play a vital role in the regulation of chloride, so an imbalance in this electrolyte can lead to a problem with these organs. Severe dehydration or diabetes can affect your kidney's ability to maintain chloride balance.
Chloride test is often done as a part of the basic metabolic or comprehensive metabolic panel. This test also helps your healthcare provider detect abnormal blood chloride levels to diagnose certain serious health conditions, including alkalosis, which happens when the blood is too basic or alkaline, and acidosis when your blood is extremely acidic.
What is the purpose of the Chloride Test?
A chloride test detects the appropriate chloride levels in your blood. The chloride level in your blood is often measured with other electrolytes, including sodium, potassium, and carbon dioxide, to monitor or diagnose certain medical conditions, including heart failure, kidney disease, high blood pressure, and liver disease. A chloride test is usually done to check your general health as part of a routine blood screening. It is also helpful in diagnosing various conditions related to fluids or acid imbalance in your body.
What does the Chloride Test Diagnose?
A chloride test is often performed to diagnose diseases such as heart failure, kidney disease, high blood pressure, and liver disease. Your doctor may order a chloride test as part of an electrolyte panel to measure chloride and other electrolytes, including sodium, potassium, and bicarbonate. If your healthcare provider is concerned about your kidney or heart health, they may order a chloride test to understand what might be wrong.
Why Do You Need a Chloride Test?
Your healthcare provider may order a chloride test if you exhibit fluid or acid imbalance symptoms, including:
- Extreme fatigue
- Tiredness
- Trouble breathing
- Dehydration
- Vomiting over a long time
- Diarrhoea
Chloride tests can help your healthcare provider determine if there is any issue with your kidneys, lungs, or other body parts that control the balance of bases and acids in your body. These tests can be helpful in assessing the effectiveness of various treatments for acid-base disorders. Measuring chloride levels can reflect how well your body can maintain a healthy acid-base balance. Your healthcare provider may order this test if you are experiencing conditions affecting the balance of fluids in your body or symptoms caused by an acid-base disorder.
Preparation and procedure required for the Chloride Test
If you're undergoing a chloride test, do not eat or drink anything eight hours prior to this test. You should also inform your healthcare provider about any drugs or medications you take, as they may lead to inaccurate results. Avoid taking diuretics and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, as they can affect your test results. If you have diarrhoea or vomiting in the days before this test, it may lead to low chloride levels in the test.
During the chloride test, a phlebotomist will collect your blood sample for further evaluation. They will clean the blood draw area with an antiseptic to ensure there is no infection. Then they will tie a band around your arm and insert a needle into your vein. You may experience sharp pain or tingling sensation as the needle enters, but these symptoms will resolve on their own. The drawn blood will be collected in a vial. After the blood collection process, the phlebotomist will remove the band. The blood draw site will be covered with a cotton ball or a band-aid. The collected blood sample will be sent to the lab for further analysis.
Understanding the Chloride Test results
Your chloride test results will show you a description of the concentration of chloride in your blood. Chloride levels are typically measured in milliequivalents per litre (mEq/L) or millimoles per litre (mmol/L). In the test report, you can also see reference ranges describing the appropriate level of chloride in healthy patients. There can be a variation in the reference ranges depending on the lab processing the test. You should contact your doctor to interpret the chloride test results.
The general reference range for chloride in blood is around 98 to 106 mmol/L or mEq/L. An elevated chloride level in the blood is called hyperchloremia. Excess chloride in your body can lead to dangerous consequences because of its link to higher acid in the blood. If it isn't treated on time, it can cause kidney failure, kidney stones, bone problems, muscle problems, heart problems, a hampered recovery ability, and even coma. Above-normal chloride levels may be due to bromide poisoning, severe dehydration, renal or metabolic acidosis, or medications that treat glaucoma.
A low chloride level means you have a low level of chloride in your blood called hypochloraemia. This may be due to congestive heart failure, excessive sweating, vomiting, burns, respiratory alkalosis, and metabolic alkalosis.
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