What happens when we receive the results of medical tests and we have them in our hands? Like any human being, at that very moment we may begin to review each of the items and of course, the different values that accompany them. If we are even more curious and are concerned about our health, we may go to the Internet to know if these levels are within normal limits. A better alternative would be to use an online application that goes by the name of KnowYour4.
When we visit the official website of KnowYour4 we will notice at the bottom of the site, that the developer of this service mentions very clearly that it not intended to be a medical report but rather, something referential that must be taken into account to know the situation in which we could find ourselves at that moment. In this article we will mention a few aspects that are worth taking into account when using each of the options proposed in your online tool.
A small medical form called KnowYour4
Basically that is what we will find once we go to the official KnowYour4 website and where, primarily We will see the presence of four fields to fill in; They do not have to be used randomly but rather, with the help of the report of the results that perhaps we did previously. Despite the fact that this page is in English, each of the fields present there are very easy to identify, these being:
- The total value of cholesterol.
- The value of HDL cholesterol.
- Blood pressure
- The number of cigarettes smoked per week.
As we can admire, each of these fields suggests aspects that generally come as a request to a medical examination. We must pay attention to the units to use, something that is located towards the right side of each of the fields.
What if i don't have these values in my lab results?
The developer of knowyour4 has thought of practically everything, because at the top there is a message in a box (also in English), where this question is asked, that is, What if i don't know the values of these four numbers?
The moment we select this box (button), another window with a similar appearance but with different fields to fill in will be displayed, which could also be used as a reference by this online application (KnowYour4) to be able to know the state in which we are at that moment. For example, these new items to fill in suggest the following:
- Our height in feet or inches.
- Our weight in pounds.
- Blood pressure (same as previous screen).
- The number of cigarettes that the patient smokes per week.
As you will be able to admire, in both alternatives a data is requested that is very important and relevant to be able to know the state in which our heart is, this being the blood pressure and of course, the number of cigarettes that are smoked at week.
We could go back to the previous screen by clicking on the button at the top that says "Go Back"; In any of the two methods that we are in, after having filled in each one of the fields we will have the possibility of jumping to another window that will give us referential values about the state in which we may be at that moment.
In this window a graph will appear, where the blood-colored bar (the most intense color) is the one that belongs to us; here the percentage of current risk of having a heart attack. Another percentage value will be shown a little higher, which is a sign that if our attitude remains constant (especially with tobacco smoking habits), we could have a higher risk of suffering a heart attack.
All this information can be shared on your Facebook and Twitter social networks, although, as we mentioned earlier, these results are referential and therefore do not imply what your GP could subsequently indicate.