-Socrates
A quotation that is printed on the shirt of my co-passenger in the jeepney when I was going home last Saturday. Thanks to Socrates, because of his philosophy, I was reminded of our assignment in Clinical Chemistry: to research about the laboratory test regarding catecholamines.
And as the jeepney ride becomes boring 'cause of the traffic jams, I decided to peak through the windows to gasp some fresh air and be amused on how the construction worker manages the bulldozer as it picks and throws heavy rocks from one place to another. And in a blink of an eye, I was transported to a certain hospital that seemed so familiar to me yet I can’t remember the exact details why this hospital appears to be a part of my life.
Still in a state of shock as to what was happening to me, I didn’t notice that a nurse was talking to me in that very instant. She’s like explaining things to me about what I will be going through. She asked me if I exercised, smoked or in emotional stress, and I answered no. She smiled and said "Good boy, because if you did one of the things that I have mentioned, results of your test will be inaccurate." Feeling confused and puzzled, I remembered her explaining the test, that what I will be going through is for my own sake. Also, I must remain calm as I can cause either negative and positive results.
The nurse then instructed me to go to the laboratory downstairs. I didn’t know why I followed her. Going downstairs, I saw a familiar face going the opposite direction. I smiled to him, and he smiled back. I liked to open a conversation with him, but when I looked, back he was gone. I felt goosebumps all over my body.
As I still refresh my mind of the guy, I didn’t notice that “nasa laboratory na pala ako.”, and a Med.Tech warmly welcomed me. I noticed that he was holding a tray of syringes, wet and dry cotton, tourniquet, micropore and a GREEN VACUTAINER TUBE. I remembered in our class discussions that a green vacutainer tube contains sodium heparin or lithium heparin. This anticoagulant is said to potentiate the action of antithrombin III.
After 30 minutes, the med tech told me to lie in a supine position and inserted the needle right into my vein. When I was about to feel uncomfortable of the situation, I remembered the angelic face of the nurse telling me to be calm as the sea. So I did
Then the medtech asked me to go to the doctor’s main office, and without hesitation I did. It was like I was hypnotized to follow whatever they were telling me. Before I leave the laboratory, a paper flew to me from the pocket of the medtech, and i read whats on it, its about RADIOMETRIC ANALYSIS of CATECHOLAMINES. According to what is written on the paper, it says that doing the said method of catecholamine determination follows the following principle:
And in a split of a second, I was with the doctor. Amazing! He started to open the conversation asking me that if I know the purpose of the test. I answered back no. The doctor explains that the test was to determine whether I have pheochromocytoma or tumors of the nervous system that affects the catecholamine levels that are secreted in my body. This results in constant or intermittently high blood pressure. Incidents of high blood pressure may be escorted by indications such as headache, sweating, palpitations, and anxiety. The test was also to determine if high blood pressure and other symptoms are connected to unseemly hormone secretion and to spot the type of tumor causing elevated catecholamine levels. "And for the normal level of the catecholamines, read this", said the doctor.
Before thanking the doctor, I heard people laughing. I felt that someone was shaking me. I didn’t know her but I remembered that this particular old lady was in the same jeep as I am. She’s waking me up because I was drooling. I knew it! I was just sleeping. Everything was a dream. And as I wiped the drool, I was enlightened and happy (though they were still laughing -- "saliva case") because I now know how to present my CC assignment in a different way.
References:
- http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Catecholamines+Tests
- http://www.aruplab.com/guides/ug/tests/0080957.jsp
- http://www.healthlinkbc.ca/kb/content/medicaltest/tw12861.
- Delmar's Guide to Laboratory and Diagnostic Tests by Rick Daniels
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