The key difference between lipid profile and liver function test is that lipid profile test is a blood test to find out abnormalities in lipids such as cholesterol and triglycerides, while liver function test is a blood test to find out the overall health of the liver.
Lipid profile and liver function test are two types of blood tests. There is a strong correlation between liver function tests, lipid profile, and fibroscan in liver diseases such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Both lipid profile and liver function tests are often recommended together by doctors for patients with suspected liver conditions.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is a Lipid Profile Test
3. What is a Liver Function Test
4. Similarities – Lipid Profile and Liver Function Test
5. Lipid Profile vs Liver Function Test in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Lipid Profile vs Liver Function Test
What is Lipid Profile Test?
A lipid profile test is a blood test to find out abnormalities in lipids such as cholesterol and triglycerides. It is also called a complete cholesterol test. This test helps to determine the risk of building up fatty deposits known as plaques in the arteries. These fatty deposits often lead to narrowed or blocked arteries throughout the body and cause a disease known as atherosclerosis.
A complete cholesterol test is done to determine or calculate four types of fats in the blood such as total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL or bad cholesterol), high-density lipoprotein (HDL or good cholesterol), and triglycerides. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), this test is recommended for people who are at higher risk of coronary artery disease because they have a family history of high cholesterol or heart attacks, are overweight, physically inactive, have diabetes, eat an unhealthy diet, and smoke cigarettes. Sometimes, people might feel soreness or tenderness around the site where the blood is drawn due to infection. Furthermore, according to US guidelines, the desirable total cholesterol level, LDL cholesterol level, HDL cholesterol level, and triglycerides level after performing the lipid profile test are below 200 mg/dL, below 70 mg/dL, below 40 mg/dL, and below 150 mg/dL, respectively.
Figure 01: Lipid Profile Test
What is Liver Function Test?
A liver function test is a blood test to find out the overall health of the liver of patients. It is used to diagnose and monitor liver diseases or damages. It measures how well the liver performs its normal functions of producing proteins (enzymes) and clearing bilirubin (a blood waste product). Moreover, it also measures enzymes the liver cells release in response to damage or disease.
A liver function test can be used to detect liver conditions such as viral or alcoholic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and damage caused by medications. A liver function test also measures the level of certain enzymes and proteins. If the levels are higher than normal, that indicates liver problems. The normal ranges are as follows:
Alkaline transaminase – 4 to 36 U/L
Aspartate transaminase – 8 to 33 U/L
Alkaline phosphatase is 44 to 147(IU/L
Bilirubin is less than 0.3 mg/dl,
Gamma-glutamyltransferase is 5 to 40 U/L
Lactate dehydrogenase is 105 to 333 IU/L
Liver function tests also measure prothrombin time (normal range 10 to 13 seconds). If it is increased, it means the liver is damaged by drugs like warfarin. In addition, liver function tests measure albumin and total protein level as well (normal range 34 to 54 g/L). If the level of albumin goes down, it indicates liver damage or disease. Furthermore, the main risk associated with liver function tests is soreness or bruising at the site of the blood draw.
What are the Similarities Between Lipid Profile and Liver Function Test?
- Lipid profile and liver function test are two types of blood tests.
- There is a strong correlation between lipid profile and liver function test in liver diseases such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
- Often lipid profile and liver function tests are recommended together by doctors for patients with suspected liver conditions.
- Both tests measure biomolecule levels in the blood.
- Both tests are very cheap techniques.
- They are performed in specified laboratories by skilled technicians.
What is the Difference Between Lipid Profile and Liver Function Test?
A lipid profile test is a blood test to find out abnormalities in lipids such as cholesterol and triglycerides in patients, while a liver function test is a blood test to find out the overall health of the liver of patients. Thus, this is the key difference between lipid profile and liver function test. Furthermore, a lipid profile test is mainly performed to detect cardiovascular diseases, while a liver function test is mainly performed to detect liver diseases such as viral or alcoholic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and damages caused by medications.
The below infographic presents the differences between lipid profile and liver function test in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.
Summary – Lipid Profile vs Liver Function Test
Lipid profile and liver function test are two types of blood tests. A lipid profile test is a blood test to find out abnormalities in lipids such as cholesterol and triglycerides in patients, while a liver function test is a blood test to find out the overall health of the liver of patients. So, this summarizes the difference between lipid profile and liver function test.
Reference:
1. “Liver Function Tests.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 18 Aug. 2021.
2. Ross, Heather. “Lipid Panel Cholesterol Test: Ranges, Procedure, and Results.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 14 Mar. 2022.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Cholesterol Test” (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Picpedia.org
2. “Liver Diagram” By T Sheasby – Own work (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
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