ِAbout Clinical laboratory science

Clinical laboratory science (CLS), also called “medical laboratory science,” is the health profession that provides laboratory information and services needed for the diagnosis and treatment of disease. The field of clinical laboratory science combines many sciences, including microbiology, hematology, chemistry, and immunology. Clinical laboratory scientists perform a variety of laboratory tests, ensure the accuracy of the test results, explain the significance of laboratory test results, and evaluate new methods for laboratory tests. Some of the tests performed in the clinical laboratory are relatively simple. Others, such as DNA analysis and flow cell cytometry, are complex and require extensive education.
Examples of laboratory tests performed by clinical laboratory scientists include

• Detection of the abnormal cells that cause leukemia
• Analysis of cardiac enzyme activity released during a heart attack
• Identification of the type of bacteria causing an infection
• Analysis of the coagulation factors in cases of abnormal bleeding
• Detection of blood group antibodies that cause transfusion reactions
• Analysis of genetic markers for cystic fibrosis
• Typing patients for histocompatibility matches prior to transplantation