Diagnosing the specific agent responsible for viral hepatitis can be difficult because the signs and symptoms of each type are similar. Furthermore, many individuals who contract the disease have few or no symptoms. Hepatitis presents a challenge to physicians who must try to integrate epidemiological, clinical, and serological data before making patient management decisions. Hepatitis learning guide presents a discussion of each type of viral hepatitis and how serological assessments of the patients can aid in differential diagnosis.

Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), one form of kidney dysfunction, is increasingly recognized as a major public health concern. The continuum of CKD ranges from mild kidney damage to end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Early detection and appropriate management can help delay progression to kidney failure and the development of complications. 

Diagnosis of CKD is based on laboratory criteria and has important implications for patients, with emotional, pharmacological, and socioeconomic impact. New practice guidelines and the standardization of renal function tests offer an opportunity to greatly improve the health of CKD patients and reduce the cost of care.

Kidney Learning Guide 
This learning guide is meant to serve the basic educational needs of healthcare professionals who are involved in the laboratory or manage patients who have or are at risk of kidney disease.  

The Six Sigma Based Quality Control learning guide provides the basics of statistical quality control (SQC) in a laboratory. SQC is an essential laboratory practice to ensure reported test results achieve the quality required for intended medical use. Analytical quality demands continue to increase as physicians and patients depend on test results for optimal diagnosis and treatment. Although modern highly automated systems provide many function checks to ensure proper operations to produce accurate results, no analytical system is perfectly stable. Laboratories need SQC to provide a final independent check to detect performance changes potentially causing medical errors.

The Thyroid Learning Guide serves the basic educational needs of health care professionals associated with thyroid function testing. Thyroid disease is the most prevalent endocrine disorder known. The onset of thyroid disease is often misunderstood by the patient. This is because the clinical manifestations of thyroid dysfunction vary considerably among patients in their characteristics and severity.

Successful diagnosis and management of thyroid disease requires close collaboration between the physician, clinical laboratory and the patient. This guide provides an overview of thyroid gland function and the diseases and treatments associated with thyroid gland dysfunction.